Love is All we Need
by lostinfantasy1493
Summary: May plays a prank which gets Ash and Misty into trouble; Drew loops May into his own devious scheme, and Max and Brock are hell bent on beating the other down in order to bask in the attention of Professor Oak, whose attention is meanwhile focused on the mysterious behavior of his grandson.
1. May's Idea

**Love is All We Need**

**Author's Note: Hello! Uh, yeah. I pretty much doubt I'm gonna get more than two reviews. But what the heck. Just read, okay? Oh, by the way, STILL stuck in my other fic. But nobody's interested, I know, so who cares?? **

**I own Pokemon. Whaddya gonna do, huh? HUH?**

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Chapter One—May's Idea

Monday, 3 pm, Pallet Town

"So, why are we here again?" May asked as they entered Pallet Town. She, along with Ash, Max and Brock, had taken off a break from their journey in Hoenn for some relaxation.

"We're here because I want to meet my mom, plus I need some of my old Pokemon back," Ash replied, shifting Pikachu (who was sleeping) from his arms to inside his jacket.

"Well, where do you want to head first?" Brock asked.

"Let's go to Ash's place first. I'm starving!" Max said. Everybody else agreed, so they set off for Mrs Ketchum's house. As they walked along the road, Ash fell a little behind, lost in thought. He gazed deeply at the flowers bordering the dirt path. May noticed this, and she lessened her pace for Ash to catch up with her. "Whaddup with you?" Ash looked at her with a sudden start. "Nothing. I was just thinking," he said.

"About what? Or maybe _who_?" May teased him, grinning at the sudden confused and embarrassed look he gave her at her comment.

"Quit it, May," Ash said. He turned to Brock. "Hey, do you remember the last time we came here?"

Brock scratched his head. "No, not really," he admitted.

"Oh, yeah, I forgot. You were back in Pewter with your family at the time. I was with Misty," Ash said.

"So _that's _who you were thinking of!" May exclaimed. She gave Ash a victorious grin. "You like her, don't you?"

"Pssh, May. Of course I like her, but only as a friend. Just because a guy thinks of a girl sometimes, doesn't mean he has to like her."

"Yeah, but what if _a guy _thinks about _a girl _all the time?" May asked, trying to hide her grin. Ash blushed hard.

"I don't think of her all the time," he said.

"Oh, I never meant _you_," May said. Ash blushed even more at that. May grinned secretly to herself. _Haha, you're stuck in my trap now! _she thought gleefully.

Just then, Max, who had been quiet for sometime, stopped and turned around to face his sister. "What about you, always going on about Drew? Do _you _like _him_?" he asked her teasingly. He didn't actually care that much for Ash. He just didn't want to lose his perfect opportunity to embarrass his sister. He knew perfectly well that she liked Drew. After all, she was his sister. He knew every single expression on her face, every single move she made. And he knew that the expressions she made around Drew were _not _usual.

He was right. May started blushing so hard, Ash and Brock thought her head would suddenly explode. "Of-of course not! Why would you think I like Drew? He's such an idiot! Max, you and your funny ideas!! Heh…heh…" she stammered, secretly cursing her little brother.

"Whatever you say, sis," Max said, turning around and resuming his walk. May ran to catch up with him so that they could have a little "talk."

Ash and Brock stayed behind, walking together. "They just keep looking for ways to throw each other down, right, Ash?" Brock said. After receiving no response, he turned toward his right to face Ash. He noticed that he kept staring at one particular spot on his right in the flowers surrounding the dirt path. "What? Why do you keep staring there?" Brock asked him. Ash turned around.

"You promise not to pass any comments like May does?"

"Hey, I'm your old Brock here. You can count on me," Brock said.

Feeling that he could trust him, Ash started relating the events that had happened the last time he went to Pallet.

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FLASHBACK

"Misty, hurry up already! Flowers are so dumb, and besides, they're not going anywhere! Can't you pick some _after _we're done with lunch at Mom's?" Ash asked her crossly. They'd been traveling for a long time, and, as usual, Ash was _very_ hungry.

"Here's a thought, Ketchum. Try controlling your stomach instead of me for a change! Besides, we can't come later because by then somebody might've picked the flowers I want!" Misty retorted, not bothering to look at him.

"It's not _my _fault you suck at cooking so much we had to throw the food away and starve ourselves!" Ash said, narrowing his eyes.

"Well, I'm better than _you,_ at any rate!" Misty yelled.

"I'm not talking to you!"

"Fine!"

"Fine!" Ash turned around, really angry by now. He decided to go without her. Slowly, he started walking. _Gosh, I need food_, he thought, holding his aching stomach. He turned around to look at Misty. _Look at her, going around those stupid plants. She's such a bighead! She doesn't care for anybody but herself. Hmph! _

Just then, he saw a tiny Weedle in the grass.

Right next to Misty.

Getting ready to sting her.

For a moment Ash thought of warning Misty, but then he figured, she didn't care about his hunger, so why should he bother? Trying not to care, he turned back around. But then his thoughts flooded with the pain she would get if the Weedle stung her. Then she'd have to go to the hospital, and she'd be in real pain…

Without wasting a moment, he turned back around. "MISTY LOOK OUT THERE'S A WEEDLE BEHIND YOU!!!!!!!" he screamed, running towards her.

"Huh?" Misty turned around. She squealed in fright, and accidentally kicked the Weedle away. It went across the field with a stunned "Weeee!!!"

Ash, who had his eyes closed and hadn't seen Misty kick it away, could only hear her squealing, and he started running even faster. He jumped, thinking that he was jumping on the Weedle. But he didn't see Misty standing right there. And neither did Misty, who had her eyes closed as well.

WHAM!!!!!!!! Ash landed on top of Misty, their bodies colliding hard with each other.

_Whoa! Is it just me or is this Weedle a bug bonanza? _Ash thought, feeling what was below him.

"Ash…what're you doing?" Misty's voice asked uneasily.

_Huh? _Ash opened his chocolate brown eyes to find a pair of deep cerulean blue ones staring back at them. _Oh damned shit_, he thought, realizing that the thing he'd just felt up, was Misty. He saw that his right hand was on her thigh while the left was in between her stomach and her chest. Cursing himself, he quickly placed his hands on the grass beside her, and tried to get off of her, but found out that he couldn't, because Misty was holding him by his shoulders. But she let go as soon as she felt his tug. Both of them sat up, blushing really hard. They didn't say anything for a while; just looked around, both at a loss for words.

"Uh, Misty…" Ash began, after a while.

"Hmm?" Misty asked him.

"Uh, I'm sorry for what I did just now...I…uhm…thought you were the Weedle…"

"What? Oh, that…It's…okay, I guess…" Misty said, blushing at her remembrance of what just happened. After another long silence, she decided to say something.

"Ash?"

"Yeah?" Ash asked, venturing to shoot a glance at her.

"I'm sorry for, you know, not listening to you back then."

"Aw, it's okay. You know we have fights all the time," Ash said, gradually regaining his usual self.

"Yeah, I guess," Misty said, still feeling a little uneasy. Just then, Ash's stomach growled. Misty looked at him.

"You really are hungry, aren't you?" she asked him pitifully.

"Yeah, I'm feeling a little weak. But you can pick more flowers if you want. I'm not that hungry."

"Don't you go around making sacrifices for me, Ash Ketchum," Misty said, flicking his nose with her index finger playfully. "Come on, let's go." She got up along with Ash, who suddenly started to feel really dizzy. He decided to just keep his mouth shut this time. _Oh gawd, I can't see anything,_ he thought, stumbling. BAM!!!!

"Did you really not see that tree? Or are you trying to make me laugh?" Misty said, helping Ash up.

"Naw, it's nothing….just feeling a little dizzy that's all…" Ash whispered hoarsely, rubbing his head.

"Come on, hold my hand," Misty said, holding it out for him. Ash looked at his blurred vision of her confusedly. _What??_

"Hold it!!" she said again, jerking her hand again. Ash just stared at her blurred hand. Misty sighed heavily, and linked her arm with his. "Come on, I'll lead the way."

"Uh, okay I guess…" Ash said. _Her arm's so soft…_

Misty smiled at him. _He's so cute when he does stupid things…_

END FLASHBACK

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"So you're telling me you had a fight with her and then tried to save her, and then you jumped on her and felt her up, and then she linked her arm with yours because you were feeling dizzy??" Brock asked him.

"Yeah, that was pretty much what happened," Ash said, blushing. "But I was wondering…" he added.

"Wondering about what?" Brock asked him.

"I was wondering what would've happened if I'd done that on purpose," Ash said.

"You would never have done that on purpose," Brock said to him.

"Of course not, Brock. I'm not like that. But let's say I did want to touch Misty, you know, in _that _way. What do you think she would've done?"

"Okay, first off, why are you even asking that question?" Brock said, confused at Ash's weird thoughts.

"I'm just wondering. But tell me, what do you think Misty would've done?"

"Well, let's see. She could've hit you hard, run off crying and reported you to Jenny, or something like that. _Or_," he added, "she could've felt really nice."

Ash stopped with a start. "Why'd she do that? She's not a whore!"

"I never said she was! Besides, she's not going out with anybody."

"That still doesn't make any sense."

"I mean, that's what she might've done if she liked you," Brock said, careful not to let out Misty's secret.

Ash looked at him. "Do you think…maybe she _does _like me?"

Brock shrugged. "Of course she likes you. You two are best friends. Maybe she might even fall in love with you, if you just gave her the chance."

"You mean, if I tell her I love her—which I _don't_, okay?"—Brock raised up his hands as if to say, 'I never meant that!'—"she'll go out with me," Ash said, still a little confused.

"I think she already does like you a lot. I mean, considering her attitude, she'd have ripped you to pieces if you'd done that—especially after you two had just had a fight. But she didn't. She didn't even yell or anything. She became uncomfortable. Don't you think that's weird? I mean, for Misty?"

Ash scratched his head. "Yeah, I guess you're right. But—"

Just then, they were interrupted by a loud yell from Max. "OW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! THAT HURT!!!!!!! OH NOW YOU'RE GONNA GET IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

"Do whatever you want. I'm not afraid of—AAAAAHHHH!!!!!!" May squealed as Max threw all his cold bottled water on her.

"THAT'S IT YOU LITTLE WORM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" May screamed, running after her little brother.

Brock turned to Ash. "You think we should stop them?"

"Well, it's fun to watch them fight, but I don't want them to go to jail for it…so let's go," Ash started running.

"Okay, you handle May, I'll deal with Max," Brock said quickly, running as well to catch up with the siblings.

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Monday night, around 9:30 pm

"Well, I'm going to bed. If any of you guys are sleeping in my room, tell me now so that I don't have to wake up to unlock the door in the middle of my sleep."

"Nah, Max and I are sleeping in the guest room, and May's sleeping in Mrs Ketchum's room on the floor," Brock said.

"Alright then. Good-night, everybody. Night, Mom. Love you," Ash said, quickly giving his mother, who was sitting on the couch with his friends watching TV, a peck on the cheek. As he climbed upstairs, he couldn't help thinking about his talk with Brock earlier in the morning. _I wonder if Brock's right…_he thought as he entered his bedroom, that was exactly in the state he had left it in when he'd left Pallet the last time. He flopped on his bed and switched on the radio. The last part of one of his favorite songs, "You're Beautiful", was playing. He listened to the song, thinking over what Brock had told him. _But even if he's right, do _I_ like Misty? In _that _way? _he thought to himself as he changed into his pj's. **(AN: Well, what does a guy wear when he goes to sleep?? I have no idea!!!) **He got into bed, lost in his thoughts, and gradually fell asleep.

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Back downstairs

"Hey, you guys wanna play Life upstairs in the guest room? I found a box of that in Ash's room, and I don't think he'll mind if we use it," Brock said. He, May and Max were really bored because Mrs Ketchum had taken over the remote and was watching some old soap that was _waay _too sappy and weird for them. May readily agreed, but Max said he was feeling too sleepy and decided to go straight to bed. They went upstairs. As soon as Max had fallen asleep, Brock and May started talking.

"Hey, what were you guys doing back when Max and I were fighting this morning??" May asked him, as she rolled the dice.

"Nothing much. Ash was telling me about the last time he came to Pallet with Misty," Brock said, handing her a card.

"Oh yay!! I get eighty thousand!! So what did he tell you??"

"Well, it's not like he told me to keep it a secret, so I'll just give you an overview. But don't tell him, just in case. Oh man!! Another kid! But I already have two!!"

May laughed softly. "Don't talk too loudly. You'll wake Max up. So anyway, what did Ash tell you?"

Brock shrugged. "He told me that the last time he came here, he and Misty got into a fight, and then a Weedle was about to sting Misty, so he jumped on it but he accidentally jumped on Misty instead and he felt her up, thinking that she was the bug. And she didn't yell at him."

Giggling at the fact that Ash thought Misty was the Weedle, May thought over the situation as she took her turn. "Misty really does have a crush on Ash, doesn't she?"

"She told me herself she liked him a lot," Brock said, looking at her.

May looked at him as she handed him the dice. "Do you think Ash likes Misty?"

Brock scratched his head. "Has anybody ever been sure of what Ash is thinking?"

May grinned. "I doubt even Ash himself has been sure of that."

Brock laughed softly. "You're right. But I think he does like her. I mean, at any rate, he doesn't hate her."

May didn't respond. A plan was forming slowly in her mind. Brock snapped his fingers in front of her face. "Helloo??" May looked at him with a start. "Whaddup with you all of a sudden?" he asked her.

"Nothing. I was just thinking," she said.

"About what?"

"I was thinking that maybe Ash does like Misty, but he doesn't know it yet. Maybe he has feelings for her, but he doesn't realize that it's love."

Brock nodded slowly. "I see where you're going. But what can we do about this?"

"I was thinking, why don't we try to get Ash and Misty together? It'll take a little white lie, but still, it's the least we can do for our best friends, right?"

Brock nodded again. "Yeah, but how do we do that?"

May looked at him, a slight grin forming on her face. "Is your laptop charged?"

"Yeah, but what—"

"Is the wireless Internet connection working?"

"I'll have to check, but—"

"Shh!! You'll wake Max up. Just get your laptop out. I'll explain everything."

"Okay."

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**Author's Note: So, how was the chapter?? I know it's a surprise, since I didn't tell anybody about it. Well, this story just sorta came to me last night when I was going to bed, so I wrote it up as soon as I got up today. R&R please!! Bye!!**

**W/Luv, LIF **


	2. Ways to use the Internet

**Author's Note: Heyloe again!! Well, since I FINALLY have nothing to do, after an entire year of running around (which includes last year), I couldn't resist typing this up. So, enjoy!! (which I highly doubt you will, 'cos I still suck!!)**

**Oh, last time I forgot to mention the ages of everybody. So let's see…**

**Ash: 17 (but he still hasn't lost that cute boyish look he has. Oh, and his voice is NOT like the Battle Frontier series!! I hate that voice!! It's the normal one, ok??)**

**Gary: 17 (STILL BURNIN' OF COURSE:P But the voice is different. I never liked Gary's voice in the show.)**

**Misty: Sweet 16!!**

**Brock: 20-something. Uh, yeah. Okay, 20.**

**Max: Well, he looks about four but let's make him 10. **

**May: Uh, 15. Yeah. I like the girls one or two years younger than the boys. Ehehe :P Once again, NO BATTLE FRONTIER VOICE!!! Hers sounds like Jessie's in the BF series!!!!**

**Drew: 16 and REALLY CUTE:D And his voice is the new one, okay?**

**Delia: No clue! You know the way old people like to keep their ages a secret?? Lol.**

**Prof. Oak: Uh, I have no idea. Hey, shouldn't he be dead by now? I mean, it's been eight years since the whole Pokemon issue started and he was grey-haired from the beginning…Ah, whatever.**

**Oh, and I haven't given the whole story away. There's gonna be a lot of Contestshipping as well…plus a lot more events…you know, that wind up in the climax. So don't think you're too smart just because you read the summary in the last chapter. (Not talking to you, Lilli!!!)**

**Author: Of course I own Pokemon!!! And I own the song!!! (Holds Pokemon tapes and song CD in hand) I own everything!! Bow down to me!!**

**(Satoshi Tajiri, Diddy and Keyshia Cole come up)**

**Satoshi: Yeah, right. (All three snatch tapes from hand)**

**Author: NOOO!!!! MY POWER HAS GONE!!!!!!!! I'LL SUE YOU!!!! I'LL SUE YOU ALL!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (Laughs freakishly and explodes)**

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Chapter 2-Ways to use the Internet

Tuesday afternoon, 3 pm, Cerulean City Gym, Misty's Room

Misty sighed as she flopped on her bed and switched on the radio on her nightstand. _God, the day couldn't get more boring,_ she thought to herself. She turned on her side to look at her on computer, to see if she'd received any email from anybody. _Nope. No message either_, she thought, blowing a wisp of hair out of her face with a fed-up expression. She concentrated on what the radio was wafting out instead of how bored she was.

"All right, this is our last caller for today. Hello?"

"Hi, this is Ryan."

"Hey, Ryan! What's up?"

"Um, I'm really depressed."

"Depressed?? Why?"

"My girlfriend broke up with me."

"Why? What did you do??"

"I didn't do anything!!"

"Oh, I'm sorry. Well, I hope you guys get things patched up. So would you like to dedicate the next song to your girlfriend??"

"Yeah, but can I leave a message for her first?"

"Sure, go ahead."

Misty listened with interest. _I think this dude watches too many sappy movies. Either that, or he really loves his girlfriend._

"Lisa, I just want to say I'm sorry if I ever did anything to make you mad. But what you saw, that wasn't the truth!! You already know Jane's jealous of me! She cornered me and forced herself on to me, and then she blamed me for forcing myself on her when you came in!! Lisa, please try to understand. It's not my fault!!"

_Wow_, Misty thought. _Way to let off the passion train. Poor guy…I really wish things work out for him. That Lisa chick's lucky to have a guy who loves her so much. I wish…_

she reached underneath her pillow and pulled out her diary. She opened it to a page which had probably been opened a lot of times, due to the fact that the book opened right to it. On the page, there was a picture of herself and Ash, and a little bit of Brock's behind. She grinned as she remembered how, on that day in the annual carnival at Fuchsia City, the three friends had all stuffed themselves inside a photo booth, but at the end, Brock had run out, seeing Officer Jenny in the distance. This picture was Misty's most prized possession, since it was the only picture where she and Ash were alone together, and in which they were both staring at the camera. She smiled, gazing at Ash, who had on a really cute smile, and whose hair was all messed up. _I gotta admit, even if I never had a crush on you, I'd still give anything to be traveling with you right now. There wasn't even one day when you didn't keep me entertained with your stupid ways. _She saw that in the picture, she and Ash were practically smoshing each other up. There wasn't even any space between them for a feather. She smiled, blushing slightly. _I wish there was one day, just one day, when Ash would ever ask me to be his girlfriend. Just one day, when he'd act like this Ryan guy…_

Just then, a beeping sound from her computer attracted her attention. She looked up to see that a window had opened up, saying "New email arrived." Misty jumped up and ran to the PC, devoutly hoping that the message was from Ash. _Please, please, please let it be from him, please!!!!_ she prayed silently as she closed her eyes. When she opened them, she checked the Sender box. "Oh God…"

**(A/N: Okay, the bold after this is the letter, the normal one is the story, the normal with "" is Misty talking to herself and the bold italics are the lyrics to the song.)**

**Sender: Ash felt excited. Sure, she always felt excited whenever a message from Ash arrived, but somehow she had a feeling that the message she was going to read was going to take her life on the fast lane again, like it used to be before she came back to Cerulean. Slowly, she scrolled down.**

**Dear Misty,**

--_Dear?? Doesn't he always write Hey??—_

**It's been a long time since I wrote to you,**

—_What?? He just wrote a week ago!_

"Does he really think that's…a long time?" Misty whispered to herself, a faint hope glimmering in her heart. Behind her, the radio was playing the new song, Last Night, by P. Diddy and Keyshia Cole. She absent-mindedly listened as she scrolled down.

**_Keyshia- I told you once, I told you twice, you can see it in my eyes/ I'm all dried out, with nothing to say/ You're everything I want it to be_—**

**but this time I'll just make this short and sweet. Remember the last time I wrote, I told you we were going to Pallet for a while?? Well, we're here. It's fun, but it ain't the same without you. That's what I always write, I know, but this time I really mean it…in a different way.**

--Misty felt a little tingle in her heart.

**_If you could only see/Your heart belongs to me/I love you so much/I'm yearning for your touch_—**

**I was wondering, um, could you come visit us while we're at Pallet? I know you're really bored, since nothing's going on at the Gym, ad I know we'd all love to meet you again. Especially me…**

**--_Come and set me free/Forever yours I'll be/Baby won't you come take the pain away/_**

The tingle in Misty's heart just kept getting worse with every word she read.—

**I really want to meet you, Misty. I want a chance to talk to you alone…**

--Misty stared at the last word. "Alone…?" she whispered. --

**I'd really love it if you came, Misty. But if you don't, I guess I'll understand.**

--_Uh, huh, Ash. You know that I can never turn down any request you make. I bet you're making your puppydog face right now. But why do you want to meet me so bad all of a sudden??—_

**You might be wondering why I want to meet you so much all of a sudden, right??**

--"Ya fink?" Misty said to herself. She kept trying to control the tingle in her heart by talking normally to herself, but somehow it just wouldn't go away.—

**Well, the truth is that I, uh…**

--"You, uh, what?" Misty said to herself, still acting as if there was nothing wrong with her. _Why's he hesitating so much?? I can't even remember the last time he used the three dots thing!—_

**Um…oh, what the heck. I might as well say it…I can't believe it's hard for me to say this even though you're not even in front of me…**

--_Yeah, that's what's bugging me too…--_

**The truth is…I think I…have a crush on you…**

**Well that's pretty much it…so I hope you'll come byewithloveAsh.**

**(A/N: Okay!! The letter's over, so back to normal mode!!)**

"Uh…" Misty faltered, staring at the words. Then suddenly, it dawned on her. Slowly, she got up. _Am I dreaming? Has this day finally arrived?_ Misty pinched herself and yelped.

"It's…real…" she whispered to herself.

"OH MY GOD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" she yelled all of a sudden, jumping on her bed and dancing to the beat of the song, a slight mist of joy in her eyes.

_I need you and you need me/This is so plain to see/And I would never let you go and/I would always love you so/I will/_

Pallet Town, 5 pm

Ash stared into his plate, pushing his food around on it using his fork as his mind was still stuck on his conversation with Brock the previous day. Ash was a very slow thinker, so it wasn't unusual if something out of the ordinary gripped him for more than a few hours. However, when Ash Ketchum poked at his food, it meant that something really disturbing was on his mind. Delia gazed at him worriedly. She couldn't remember the last time he hadn't touched his food. Something must be really bothering him. She knew her happy-go-lucky son too well.

"What's wrong with you, sweetheart?" she asked him lovingly. Ash raised his head. "Nothing, Mom."

"Come on, honey. I'm your mom. I won't bite," she said reassuringly. Ash gave her a warm smile and replied, "I'll tell you when I'm ready, Mom. So don't worry."

"Whatever you say, Ash."

A while later, though, Ash felt a strong desire to be alone so that he could think in peace. He rose from the table. "Can I be excused, Mom? I'm not very hungry."

"No, you can't, mister!! You sit down and finish your food! Do you realize how much a growing boy like you needs to eat?"

Ash gazed into his mother's eyes. Suddenly, he went over to her and gently laid his own rough cheek against her withering one. "I missed you too, Mom," he said, as both his and his mother's eyes became clouded with a mist.

Meanwhile, upstairs in the Guest Room

That day, Max and Brock had gone to Professor Oak's lab to spend the day, so the Ketchums had practically all the house to themselves…except the guest room, where May was sitting, typing away at an email to her parents back in Petalburg. She quickly hit Send and logged out of her mailbox. She grinned to herself at the remembrance of the email she and Brock had sent from Ash. It had been so easy to hack into his account (May wasn't as stupid as people thought she was) and to read his old emails to Misty. Then she typed up a new email and sent it.

"Easy as pie," she thought, giggling. _Okay, so what should I do now?_ It wasn't very often she got the computer to herself, so she was determined not to lose this chance. She logged into MSN Messenger, typing in her email address, .

**Online: Drew (Blocked)**

May decided to unblock him. After all, the only reason she'd blocked him in the first place was because Max had teased her for adding him. Besides, it wasn't like any of her other friends were online, either. _Guess I have to deal with Mr Ego_, she thought to herself, not exactly annoyed.

As soon as she'd hit the Unblock button, a new window opened up.

**Drew says: hey**

**May says: hey**

**Drew says: so…**

**May says: …?**

**May says: what's up?**

**Drew says: why do people always ask that?**

**May says: I don't know**

**May says: probably cos they don't know what else to say**

**Drew says: good point**

**Drew says: but it's annoying**

**May says: you're right**

**May says: so how come you're online? aren't you training?**

**Drew says: there's no contest going on here right now**

**May says: I know but don't you usually train in your free time, to keep your pokemon in shape?**

**Drew says: yeah…but i wasn't in the mood**

**May says: how come? I thought you said contests and stuff were your life!**

**Drew says: yeah…but something else has come into my life now**

**May says: what's that supposed to mean?**

Drew smirked to himself. _Heh, I knew she wouldn't get it. Besides, even if she did, it'd be win for me. But I guess it's better this way. I'm still not sure if she likes me or not._

**Drew says: forget it…it'll take more than just one wimp to understand big talk**

**May says: shut your big bazoo, drew**

**Drew says: I don't listen to wimps**

**May says: you know what?**

**Drew says: what?**

**May says: you're a stupid mean jackass and i hate you and i'm never gonna talk to you ever again!!!**

**Drew says: uh huh…riiight**

**May says: what!!!!!!!**

**Drew says: pssh, may…you always say that and then you always come back…go on, admit it…you can't resist me!!!**

**May says: you're right, I can't resist your big puffy head!! I always feel this strange desire to thwack it!!!!!!!!!!!!!**

**Drew says: and then save the same head from drowning in the waterfall…right, wimp??**

**May: that's it! i'm logging out!!!**

**Drew says: who's stopping ya?**

**May says: UGGHHH!!!!!!!!!!!**

May logged out, really irritated. _Who does that jerk think he is? He's a stupid, mean…_ May muttered to herself crossly as she tried to figure out what else to do. She hated surfing, but nobody was online. _Except Mr I-Think-I'm-So-Great, _she thought to herself. Sighing heavily, she logged back in. _Oh God, he's never gonna let me live it down…but I guess it's better than having nothing to do, 'cos at any rate, he keeps me entertained. In the wrong way….but still…_

Drew sat back in his chair as he counted. "Three, two, one…"

**Beep!**

**May has logged back in.**

Back at Pallet, a new window opened up.

**Drew says: see? I knew you'd come back!!**

**May says: pssh! I only came back because there's nothing else to do!**

**Drew says: yeah, I guess you're right…wimps can't do anything anyways**

**May says: look, I'm trying to be nice…so why are you acting like such a creep?**

**Drew says: because it's fun**

**May says: yeah, maybe for you**

**Drew says: okay, sorry**

**May says: it's alright, i guess**

**Drew says: hey, may?**

**May says: yeah?**

**Drew sent her an emoticon that was shaped like a rose.**

**May says: thanks**

**May says: but why do you give these to me all the time?**

**Drew says: because i like them**

**May says: if you liked em, you'd collect em, not hand em out randomly to girls**

**Drew says: but i like doing that as well**

**May says: then why don't you give them to other girls?**

**Drew says: what other girls?**

**May says: don't act so clueless…you know i mean your fangirls and stuff**

Drew, who had been getting really tense because May had cornered him, tried to figure out a way to divert the conversation.

**Drew says: jealous much??**

**May says: no…I'd rather have a few real friends than a million fake ones**

**Drew says: hey, I have real friends too**

**May says: like who?**

**Drew says: like you**

**May says: we're not friends, we're rivals**

**Drew says: come on, rivals don't chat online**

**May says: whatever…besides me, i mean**

**Drew says: ash**

**May says: besides him**

**Drew says: my little sister**

**May says: drew!!**

**Drew says: what?**

**May says: admit it! you don't have any real friends!!!**

**Drew says: yes i do**

**May says: no you don't**

**Drew says: I DO!**

**May says: you DON'T! and you're scared to admit it, chicken!!**

**Drew says: okay, fine! So I don't have any real friends besides you and ash. Way to rub it in, May!!**

**May says: drew…**

**May says: I'm sorry…**

**Drew says: sorry ain't gonna help**

**May says: then what is?**

**Drew says: you should get a punishment**

**May says: just for that??**

**Drew says: yup…because hurting someone is a very big crime**

**May says: yeah whatever**

**Drew says: it is…you said it yourself**

**May says: I did? when?**

**Drew says: a long time ago, back when you slapped Harvey for the first time and sent him to the fake jail at the carnival in mauville…remember??**

**May says: oh yeah…me and my big mouth**

**Drew says: so let me see…how should i punish you?**

**May says: how about first i decide on the million punishments you deserve for hurting me all those times??**

**Drew says: my case is too long…first we go with yours**

**May says: whatever**

**Drew says: you tell me, what would be your worst nightmare??**

**May says: hanging out with you, of course…or even looking at you, for that matter**

**Drew says: pfft!! that's a total lie**

**May says: and how may you say so?**

**Drew says: because every girl who's met me falls in love with me**

**May says: well, I'm not one of those stupid girls**

Drew grinned. _That's what I adore about you…_

**Drew says: oh, really?**

**Drew says: come on, may…you already have a crush on me**

**May says: and did you wake up after you saw that dream?**

**Drew says: well, if you don't, you're going to, someday**

**May says: and then you'll wake up**

**Drew says: I bet you can't stay for four hours with me without falling desperately in love in the end**

**May says: with a jerk like you? Yeah, riiight…I bet you I could stay with you for four months and still be annoyed by you**

**Drew says: fine, then I'm coming over to pallet**

**May says: what??**

**Drew says: well, since you guys are gonna be there five months, you and i will stay together there, and at the end of four months, we'll see how right you are at keeping your promise**

**May says: whatever, drew! there's no way i'm letting you ruin my vacation!!**

**Drew says: see? you're chickening out already because you know i'm gonna win!**

**May says: I am not!!**

**Drew says: chicken!!**

**May says: shut up**

**Drew says: squawk-squawk!!**

**May says: that's it, I'm accepting the bet**

**May says: but i warn you**

**Drew says: what?**

**May says: you're gonna lose**

**Drew says: uh-huh**

**May says: look, don't get too smart…just consider yourself lucky I'm not murdering you for ruining my hard-earned vacation**

**Drew says: because I'm not ruining it!!**

**May says: you little…**

**Drew says: okay, i'm out…I gotta pack and book the ferry anyways**

**May says: what day have you chosen to scare the lights outta the pallet people with your face?**

**Drew says: i'm gonna act like you didn't say that…I'm coming tomorrow**

**May says: i'll be out all day then**

**Drew says: then just remember…every day you and i aren't together…the deadline extends one day**

**May says: we can't be together all the time because it's not like you and i are going out**

**Drew says: now we are…just as soon as i'm done talking to ash**

**May says: drew, you wouldn't!**

**Drew says: watch me**

**Drew says: oh, and you can't tell anybody that we're not going out, because that means INSTANT LOSING**

**May says: drew, fuck you!!**

**Drew says: you can't fuck me 'cos you're a girl…besides, bad words don't suit you**

**May says: shut up, you jerk!!! you're ruining my life!!!**

**Drew says: don't you mean beautifying**

**May says: GET LOST, YOU ASSHOLE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!**

Really angry and annoyed, May logged out, leaving a large crack in the mouse's left button as she hit the Logout button. Just as she was trying to recover from this sudden plan of Drew's for the next day, the door opened and Ash came in. He grinned at May as he sat on the bed. S

"So, Drew told me you and he got together. Congrats, May!"

"Mm hmm…" May said, trying to seem calm.

"What's wrong with you? Why are you trembling?" Ash asked her.

"Nothing…I'm just too excited that he likes me," May said, faking a smile.

"Oh. Well, I personally always thought that you and he looked really nice together. So did Max and Brock. Max thinks Drew's really smart, which you know is a really high compliment, considering how he thinks he's the biggest genius in the world. And Misty saw a drawing of Drew and she thought you'd look awesome with him. And Mom says—"

"Ash, can you be quiet??" May cried, getting up and going out of the door, slamming it behind her. Ash stared at the door after her. Then, slowly, a grin spread across his face. As soon as he heard May going downstairs, he put his cell phone that was in his hand to his ear.

"Was that okay? You did hear everything, didn't you, Drew??"

On the other end, Drew was laughing heartily.

"God, she is such a good actor. When she said she was trembling with happiness, I almost believed her for a while. You were awesome, Ash. Thanks a lot."

"No prob, man. After how you saved Pikachu that day, this hardly makes up for it. Well, I gotta go. So I'll catch you tomorrow?"

"Yup. Bye, Ash."

"Bye, Drew."

Ash hung up. _Tomorrow is going to be one long day,_ he thought, as he figured he'd have to help Drew in his plan. Tomorrow did turn out to be 'one long day', as he predicted, but definitely not in the way he expected.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

**A/N: So how was the chapter? Heh…guess May wasn't kidding when she said she didn't like Drew in the last chapter.**

**May: OF COURSE I WASN'T!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!**

**Author: Eek!!! Where the heck did you come from??**

**May: Why'd you pair me up with Drew??**

**Drew: Because you and I are meant to be!! (Holds May)**

**May: Get lost, creep!! (Pushes Drew) And you!! (Pulls out mallet)**

**Author: ….Isn't that supposed to be Misty's??**

**May: She lent it to me because I could use it fully…and that's exactly what I'm gonna do right now!!**

**Author: …What's that….supposed to…mean??"**

**(Outside author's house, where this is taking place)**

**BANG!!!! **

**(Author flies out from the roof)**

**Author: Waaaaahh!!! I'm blasting off again!!**

**Team Rocket: That's our line!!**

**Author: Where'd YOU come from??**

**Jessie: Isn't this our story??**

**Author: You're not even in it!!**

**Meowth: I guess us peoples came tuh da wrong profile.**

**Ash: Uh, should I end the chapter now?**

**Author: YES, PLEASE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!**

**Ash: Okay, people, bye. And don't forget to, uhh….(whispers to author) What was that again??**

**Author: READ AND REVIEW!!!**

**Ash: Yeah, what she said. Uh, and With Love, from LIF. Whatever that means.**


	3. Unexpected Visitors

**Author's Note: Hi everybody!! Arrg….I need to clear one glitch from the last chapter. You know the part where Misty got the letter from Ash?? Yeah, that was supposed to be in different formats, bold for Ash, normal for Misty and italic bold for the song. And the May/Drew conversation wasn't supposed to be all bold. I loaded and reloaded the chapter five times, but it just wouldn't work!!!! Anyway, what's done is done. Hope y'all like this chapter.**

**Disclaimer: Please. If I owned Pokemon, May and Drew would be somewhere near engaged by now…and Gary and Ash would be fighting over Misty. Oh, and Harvey would be arrested...and sent to the dog pound. **

**Another thing for all the Pokeshippers who are against Egoshipping, flame the FIC, not the SHIP, okay?! And that too, when the fic actually needs flaming.**

**And for all those people who didn't see the rating, here's a warning: this entire story is gonna contain sexual theme content plus swearwords. So don't yell at me later on!!!!**

**This chapter is dedicated to prettygirl17 and beautifly-rulez12 (especially all the Contestshipping parts, cos I seriously didn't have any intention to have major MayxDrew in it) and aamlking (I finally did some Pokeshipping. Ya happy now? Lol) **

**The entire story is dedicated to Lilineko. Love ya always!! X) **

**PS NO, THEY ARE NOT GETTING TOGETHER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! You'll see what, and who, I mean, when you read the chapter. And don't you dare not review!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!**

**Chapter 3-Unexpected Visitors**

On the road, 10 am

Misty was driving along in her black-colored New Beetle when she saw a sign. **Pallet Town, 10 miles ahead. **She suddenly felt like she wanted to throw up as she saw a tiny cloud of smoke coming from Professor Oak's laboratory in the distance. "I still can't believe Ash wrote that letter. But how am I going to talk to him?? What do I do? I mean, what if he expects me to start talking?? I mean----arrrrrgghh!!!!!!!!!! I'm talking to myself again!!" In frustration, she beeped loudly at a tiny baby rabbit that had just strayed across the road, and braked just in time to save the poor thing from being squished.

Meanwhile, Petalburg City Port

"Goodbye, my dear. Take good care of yourself," a stout, motherly woman said to the green-haired boy as she patted his head.

"I will, mother. Please take very good care of Carrie," he responded as he bent down to face his five-year-old little sister, who had straight brown hair and intense green eyes similar to his. She looked sorrowfully at him.

"Big Brother, when will you come back?"

"I'll be gone a few months, Carrie. But I promise, I'm gonna bring back the bestest present you can get, okay?"

"The bestest-est??"

"Mm-hmm."

The little girl hugged him tightly. "Can't I come with you? I could help you pick my present."

Drew shook his head. "Don't worry. I know exactly what you'll want."

Carrie stomped her foot. "No fair!! You only came back home two weeks ago."

Drew kissed her forehead. "So when I come back, I'll stay home for a long time, okay? Just don't get into any mischief, promise?"

"I promise, Big Brother."

Just then, a man in uniform came up and tapped Drew on the shoulder. "Excuse me, sir. Are you the one with the high class room on the 10 am ferry?"

Drew turned around. "Yes. Why?"

The man looked at his watch. "It's 10:15, and we're all waiting for you," he said curtly.

"Oh my God. I'm really sorry," Drew apologized. Turning around and saying a final hasty goodbye to the two women staring at him, he sped to the ferry.

One hour later (11 am), Pallet

Ash yawned heavily as he stepped out of the house for some fresh air. Even though it'd been a while since he got up, he still felt a little sleepy. He felt better than the previous day, though, because his thoughts were no longer on Misty. Well, at least not all the time.

"It's good to be back home," he thought happily, as he straightened his black T-shirt that showed a glow-in-the-dark image of a skeleton playing drums, over his favorite pair of jeans. "Gosh, it's cold," he said to himself as he put on his jacket. It wasn't usually that cold in the autumn in Pallet, but it was better, since it got him early into the Christmas spirit, he figured. As he walked along, just enjoying the scenery and the morning breeze, a sudden wave of nostalgia swept over him.

"Yo, Ash!" a voice suddenly called. Ash turned around to find Brock and Max, on their way back from Professor Oak's.

"Hey, guys," Ash greeted them, as they approached him. "So how was the trip? Did you like it?" he asked Max. Just as he finished, he noticed that Brock was waving his hands in a "don't" way. "What?" he asked.

"It took me all last night to shut him up, and now you're starting him off again!"

"Okay, I won't say anything again."

Too late.

"Like it? **Like **it?" **I LOVED IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! **I had no idea Professor Oak is so smart, I mean I knew he was smart but I didn't realize how much. And you know what? I helped out with some of his researches. First, he took me to the room where he had all his machines and stuff, but then Brock accidentally dropped some of the chemicals, and then we had to mop it up but he still let me use his computer and help out in the researches and then…"

"Ugh! Ignore him. So, what happened yesterday? Any news?" Brock asked Ash.

"Nah, nothing much. Mom and I had some quality time and—Oh!" Ash remembered his talk with Drew, and told Brock about it.

"So, we're gonna give them the guest room and you guys can sleep in my room with me," he finished. Suddenly, they felt something odd.

"Why is it so…quiet…all of a sudden?" Brock asked, looking around.

Then they remembered. Turning around, they saw that Max was staring at them, his mouth hanging open and speechless.

"We're staying in your room?" he asked.

"Yeah," Ash said. "Why?"

Without responding, Max turned and ran off toward the other direction. "Hey, where're you going?" Ash called after him.

"Back to Professor Oak's house!! I'm staying there now because you snore a lot!!" came the distant reply.

"He's so annoying sometimes," Ash said, turning to Brock. "Don't you think so?"

"Well, you do snore—a little," Brock added hastily, seeing the death glare on Ash's face.

Back at the Ketchum household

May sighed heavily. Delia looked at her. "Now what's wrong with _you_?"

"Nothing, Mrs Ketchum."

"Fine. Nobody tells me anything these days. First Ash, and then you…Hmph!!" Delia muttered loud enough for May to hear.

"I'm sorry, Mrs Ketchum," May apologized. "It's just that yesterday I had a talk with this…person I know and we had a bet, and now he's coming over to stay here for a few months. I just don't want to be a burden on you."

"You're not a burden on me," Delia said, a little happier now that she was in on a secret. "It's tough, but it was even tougher when I was alone in the house," she added softly.

"Ash is lucky to have a mom like you, Mrs Ketchum," May said warmly. "But still. I'll make up for my friend staying here without your permission, I promise."

Eight Miles near Entrance to Pallet, 1:30 pm

Drew walked along the road, his bag bumping against his knee. He tried to search for Ash's house using the directions the former had given him. Apparently, however, Ash had once again displayed his lack of brain and given him the wrong directions, so now Drew was lost. Helplessly, he walked on, unsure what to do. Just then, he saw a black Beetle coming his way, and gestured for it to stop. As the car pulled over, a red-haired girl poked her head out.

"Hi," Drew said. "Do you know where Ash Ketchum lives?"

"Well, as far as I know, he lives _in _Pallet, not _out_, where you're headed," the girl answered playfully. "I bet fifty bucks Ash was the one who gave you the directions, right?" she asked Drew, receiving an amused nod in response. "Just as I remember him. Well, what're you standing gaping at me for? Hop in; I'm headed the same way." As Drew thankfully scrambled in, she held out her hand. "I'm Misty Waterflower, by the way. Cerulean City Gym Leader. Ash and I are…best friends," she finished softly. Drew looked at her. For a second, she seemed to be lost in her own world. But then she regained herself. "So what's your name?"

"I'm Drew," he replied as he shook Misty's hand. "Renowned Pokemon coordinator. I'm May's…boyfriend," he finished quietly, like Misty had done. Conscious that the redhead was looking at him, he smirked at her, flipping his hair.

"So…", Misty tried to start a conversation. "I've seen you on TV a lot."

"Yeah," Drew said, trying the same. "I've seen you there too. Plus Ash told me about you."

Misty blushed, and tried to change the subject, realizing she might give too much away. "Oh. So anyways, when did you guys start going out? May's supposed to be my best friend, and she never told me about this!! She's so—"

"No, you don't need to blame her," Drew said hastily. "I didn't want her to tell anybody yet before I got here. Right now, the only one who knows is Ash. So you don't need to be mad at May."

Misty looked at him with raised eyebrows. "You know, this is not what I expected from a boy like you, who's renowned for his playboy attitude." Drew shrugged. "Yeah, I do act like that. But I'm not really a playboy." he said.

Misty glanced at him. "Why do you maintain that image, then?"

"I don't know. Maybe because those fangirls make me feel like I'm not alone…you know, when I travel."

"So that means you enjoy publicity. You are one strange character," Misty said.

"I would prefer more 'unique'."

Misty smirked. "I guess May's lucky, though. You know, with you not really being a playboy and stuff."

"Thanks."

Misty tried to say something else. If this was May's boyfriend, the least she could do was to start an acquaintance. He seemed like a pretty mysterious person, though.

"So…are you…_experienced_??"

"What's that s'posed to mean?"

"Have you done it?"

Drew glanced at her, his eyebrow raised. "You know, that's a really personal question."

Misty nodded. "But being May's best friend, it's my right to ask."

Drew shrugged. "Fine. If you wanna know that badly, I _haven't _done it yet."

"Never in your life?"

"No." Drew stared ahead, at the road. "I was always too preoccupied in my contests and everything that I never had time to even get into a relationship."

Misty glanced at him in surprise. "Never in your life?!?"

"Once. But then, the girl got mad at me for being so interested in my Pokemon. She always wanted me to pay all my attention to her. We had a big fight, and then she left." Drew stopped for a moment, still not looking at Misty. "I was really devastated after that."

Misty nodded slowly. "You were afraid of heartbreaks."

Drew finally looked at her. "I guess you could say that." Then he suddenly realized something. "It's the first time I've actually told somebody about that incident," he observed.

"Guess we were born to be good friends," Misty grinned warmly at him

Seeing her friendly nature, Drew lightened up a bit, and smiled back. There was another silence, when Drew ventured at her with a question he'd been dying to ask someone for a long time, but hadn't dared to as yet.

"Do you know what…it feels like?"

Misty glanced at him with a raised eyebrow. "Well, I wish I could help you with that…but I don't know myself. I'm saving that moment for someone really special."

"What about your first kiss?"

"Saving that too. You?"  
"Same with me," Drew replied.

"Didn't you ever even get a kiss from that girlfriend of yours?" Misty asked.

"Well, she tried, a lot of times, but for some reason, every time she tried, I just felt this weird feeling, like what we were doing wasn't right, or something," Drew replied, wondering why was he so easy with this red-haired girl. _Maybe it's because she's so frank with me._

"Oh," Misty said.

Drew thought over it a bit."I don't really believe in one-night stands and all that stuff, either" he added.

"Me neither. My sisters are all about that kind of thing, and…it just sickens me. I mean, if you go around having sleepovers at some random guy's house every other day, what's the difference between them and who you really love? I mean, there's nothing special between you and that 'special person' anymore."

Drew nodded as he thought over what Misty had just said.

"I guess that's somewhat what I feel as well," he said after a while.

Misty nodded back. Then, she grinned at a sudden realization. "Do you realize it's been half an hour since you got in??"

Drew looked at his watch in astonishment. "Seriously? Hasn't it only been five or ten minutes?"

Misty laughed. "Yeah, that's what I thought too. See how nicely we're getting along?"

Drew looked up at her and smiled warmly. "Yeah." Then he thought of something and frowned.

"If all this ever got on TV, people would start making videos and writing weird stories about us getting together," he said, shuddering a bit.

"I suppose. People are really annoying that way. But I know something like that will never really happen, because I already have my heart set on somebody else…and it's been a long time."

"Well, I'm already hooked with May too, and I don't plan to leave or betray her. That's usually the reason we're on TV, haven't you noticed? Just because we refused to date some famous person."

"Uh-huh. But we both fell for the country people," Misty said, her eyes twinkling with fun.

"Well, technically May's not a country person. Her dad's a Gym Leader too, after all," Drew said, not amused, but not angry either.

"Defensive, eh? Yeah, well, Ash's been on TV, too. So technically he's not a—" Misty suddenly clamped her mouth shut, realizing in horror that she had just accidentally let out her secret. She shot a glance at Drew, who was staring at her. Slowly, a smirk formed on his face.

"So, what did you say again? _Best friends, _eh?" he asked her teasingly.

"It'd be better for you if you just stayed quiet, grass-head," she muttered, turning beet red.

"Why? Don't you think Ash should know about this? Speaking of which, you suck at picking boys to go out with," Drew told her seriously, laughing his head off inside.

"You might wanna watch that tongue of yours. I have a mallet with me, and it might just have your name on it."

"Come on, lighten up! Okay, fine. If it'll make you feel better, I'll tell you my secret as well. May and I are not really going out."

Just then, a wild deer strayed across the road. Misty braked hard, stopping just in time. Seeing that no other car was behind her, she turned to "grass-head", as she called him. "_What?_"

Drew sighed, still looking at the road. "Yeah. We're not going out. In fact, I'm not even sure that May likes me, at all," he said, his tone oh-so-slightly upset as he finished the last sentence. Misty caught the hint of sadness in his voice, but ignoring it, she narrowed her eyes at him.

"Then why did you lie to me?" she demanded indignantly.

"Because she was chatting online with me last afternoon, and I bet her that she couldn't stay with me without falling for me," Drew said in a monotonic voice, still not looking at her.

Misty nodded slowly, beginning to understand the situation. "Oh, I get it! You used to be happy because you used to meet her all the time when she was traveling, but you couldn't stand the thought of not getting to see her when the guys decided on a vacation, and so you used her inability to turn down a challenge as an opportunity to spend time with her and probably to get her to start to like you, right?" she asked knowingly.

This time, Drew looked at her, dumbfounded. "I guess that's somewhat true, but how the hell did you know?"

Misty grinned victoriously. "Reality check, Drew. I've lived with Ash for more than five years. Besides, my sisters are experts on boys," she said, inspecting her nails with an air of superiority.

Drew smirked. "So, are you here for Ash?" he asked her.

"Sorta," Misty blushed deeply and smiled. "He sent me an email which said that he had a crush on me, but he didn't want anybody to know. Which means," she added, "you better zip it, grass-head."

"All right, but only if you do too, carrot-head." Misty looked at him, trying to glare, but she soon found herself laughing along with him.

"You know," Drew said warmly, "I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship."

"Seems more like the end, after five miles of conversation," Misty said, catching a glimpse of a sign that said "Pallet Town: 3 miles ahead." They both shared a laugh.

Twenty minutes later, Ketchum household

_Ding-dong!!_

"Will somebody please get that? I'm a little busy here!" Delia's frantic voice yelled from the kitchen. She had tried yet another cooking quest—making cookies and dinner at the same time, and at the moment, was panicking as she tried to save one from burning, then another.

"I'll get it!" Ash and May yelled at the same time, the former thinking it was Drew and the latter trying to get on Mrs Ketchum's good side. Both ran to the door, only to collide into each other as they reached the door. However, Ash regained himself first, and opened the door. He had expected Drew, and there was, leaning against the wall of the house, smirking as usual. But…there was somebody else with him…somebody he had not expected in his wildest dreams…

"Misty??" Ash faltered, as he gazed at her, aghast.

"Hey, Ash," she said, blushing a little as she smiled sweetly at him. Feeling like he had lost his voice, he continued to stare at her, oblivious to the fact that he was standing in the doorway and if his mom found out that the door was open when the vents were on, he'd definitely be dead. She had grown pretty over the years, but in the outfit she was wearing at the moment, she looked especially beautiful. She was wearing a cream colored half-sleeve top that had a V-neck and was showing a chocolate brown undershirt underneath. She wore dark blue faded bell-bottomed jeans and brown sparkly flip-flops on her feet. Her hair wasn't in a side ponytail like usual—on the contrary, it was in two thick red braids that were fastened loosely with brown ribbon and cascaded down her chest. Ash couldn't take his eyes off of her. He'd forgotten everything that existed in the world, and once again, his thoughts were clouded by Misty. He felt…strange, but oddly nice.

Just then, however, he was jolted back to reality as May jumped on Misty in (fake) surprise and excitement. "Waaah!!! Mist!! When did you come here? Omigosh, it's soo AWESOME to have you here!!!! You're gonna be here our entire vacation, right? Sweet!!" she squealed, hugging the visitor.

"Thanks, May. It feels great to be with you guys again," she said warmly. Then she brought her face closer to May's. "Oh, and there's somebody out there waiting for you," she whispered playfully. May's eyes glittered for an instant, but then her expression changed to a scowl as she remembered that Drew was to arrive that day. She was about to retort, but she quickly held her tongue, remembering Drew's words: "telling anybody means INSTANT LOSING." Scowling even more, she stepped out. She had been planning to go to meet a friend of hers who lived nearby, and so she was all dressed up for the occasion. She was wearing a light pink half-sleeved crinkled blouse over a pair of jeans and flip-flops to match, and the bandana had been replaced by a pair of light pink barrettes that held her brown hair in place. She tried, almost successfully, to prevent a gasp when she saw Drew standing outside, wearing a purple-colored three-quarter sleeved shirt over a pair of dark blue jeans and his normal shoes. She was a little shocked—scratch that, _really_ shocked--to see him in clothes that she had never seen him wear before...that actually made him look…_nice._ But of course, she wouldn't say that even if a herd of Tauros were stampeding after her. Fortunately for her, Drew hadn't heard her gasp as at the moment, he was staring at how nice she looked in formal clothes. He did have a crush on her, but he had always thought her an average-looking girl. He had never known her to be this pretty…

"What are _you _staring at?" she asked him stiffly.

"Just at how sweet of you it is to dress up for me," he replied, taking advantage of the fact that Misty was watching (on purpose) and stretching out his arms to pull her into a hug. Quickly, May stooped down to avoid his arms around her. As Drew stumbled, May deliberately put her foot in his way, tripping him over so that he fell hard on the ground.

"Oops! Silly me. Sorry, _sweetheart_." May helped him up, smirking victoriously at him in a way that Misty and Ash (who had finally pulled his gaze away from Misty) couldn't see it. Drew looked at her crossly, then smirked back at her and slowly leaned in. She quickly pushed him away. "What the hell do you think you're doing?" she hissed at him.

"Getting a kiss from my 'girlfriend'," Drew said coyly.

"Over my dead body, jerk."

"Play along, May. I won't really kiss you if you do," Drew muttered, a little irritated.

"Yeah, you won't, because I won't let you!" she retorted under her breath.

"That's it! I'll just have to make you then, won't I?!" he said, annoyed.

"Do whatever you want. You wouldn't get a kiss from me if my life depended on it," May said uninterestedly.

"Fine then. You asked for it," Drew muttered, taking a deep breath.

"Come on, May, don't play so hard-to-get! Don't I deserve a welcome kiss from my girlfriend??" he said loudly. Both Ash and Misty turned around. They caught Drew's secret double blink, which meant he needed them to play along, and they grinned. May didn't notice that, though, since she was facing Drew and had her back to them.

"May, why aren't you giving Drew, uh…what he wants?" Ash asked, feeling a little uneasy talking about kissing (Misty looked at him with a loving smile, but he didn't see that). May turned around, faking a sweet smile on her face.

"Can't I play around with my boyfriend?" she asked.

Misty shook her head. "That's real mean of you, May. I know you want to kiss him too. Why don't you just go ahead with it?"

May shuddered slightly at the thought of kissing Drew.

"It's embarrassing doing it in front of someone," she said.

Misty rolled her eyes. "God, May, it's just a freaking kiss!!!!! What's the fuss about?!" She was getting really exasperated, May could tell. Sighing to herself, she gave up. She turned around, shooting a nasty glare at Drew, and placed her hands on his shoulders. As she pulled him closer, she hissed crossly, "Just wait till we're alone…"

Drew smirked. "Why? You want to go further?" He placed his hand on her waist. She narrowed her eyes at him and scowled. She was about to say something in return when Drew pressed his lips on hers. She tried to pull away from him, but he wouldn't let go of her. His lips had a firm hold of hers, and his hand on her waist prevented her from pushing him away. May tried to think of something when a brilliant idea came to her. She gazed at Drew seductively. Confused at her sudden change of mood, he let her lips a little loose. Quickly, she bit his lips really hard. He yelped in pain, jumping back and holding his lips with his hands in utter shock. May laughed softly, taking care not to let Ash or Misty notice. Drew glared at her. Ignoring him, she turned to Misty. "You guys, I have to go over to my friend's house now. She's waiting for me. Bye. Bye, _Drew, honey_," she cooed sweetly, looking at him with a victorious grin. He didn't bother to respond because his lips were hurting a lot; instead, he just looked at her with one of those mysterious expressions in his eyes that she'd seen oh-so-many times before. A little taken aback, as that wasn't what she'd expected from him; she pretended to not have seen him.

"Bye, May. By the way, what's the name of this friend of yours?"

May looked at her feet. "You don't know her."

Before Misty could say anything, May had said a quick goodbye and taken off.

Shrugging, Misty went inside, Ash carrying her bag for her. Drew stayed outside for a minute, staring at the pink figure that was running in the distance. _Considering your girly personality, you're damn hard to please, May. But they don't call me Champion for nothing._ He smirked to himself as he followed Misty, who was trying to get Ash with her alone in her room…but couldn't, since he'd already planned stuff to do with Brock, and suggested that she should get some rest. Sighing deeply to herself, Misty went up to her room alone after catching the slightly pitiful eye of Drew, who shrugged as he looked at her.

Six hours later (9 pm) in front of Ash's house

"Thanks for the ride, Melody," May said, getting out of the white convertible.

"You're welcome, May. You are coming again soon, aren't you?"

"Yeah, I'll try my best. Bye."

"Bye!" Melody yelled. The car sped off as May turned around to face the house. _Great. More of that jackass's egofest. I wouldn't even have come home if it wasn't for Mrs Ketchum. She better be grateful…_

May pulled out the key Mrs Ketchum had given her, placed it in the lock and turned it. As soon as the door had opened, she stepped inside. "I'm home, everybody!" she called. She didn't notice that one of Ash's old skateboards was right beneath her feet…

"WHOOOOAAAA!!!!!!!!!" she screamed. Drew, who was just coming down for dinner, saw May slipping just in time to run and catch her before she touched the ground. Breathless, he held her in his arms in a dip-like position, his right hand on her waist, and his left one on the back of her head. She was almost touching the ground.

"Are you okay, May? You didn't get hurt, did you?" Drew asked her, unable to conceal the worry in his voice. May was starting to feel a little weird because his worry seemed so real, but then she saw Max, who'd come over with Professor Oak for dinner, coming out of the kitchen, and realized that Drew was acting. She looked at him scornfully before detaching herself from him—gently, because she knew she'd fall if she pushed him.

"Yes and no. Thanks for saving me," she said frigidly, not bothering to look at him. Drew looked at her with first an upset, then a pissed expression in his eyes.

"Why are you being so annoying?" he asked her, as soon as Max had gone upstairs and they were alone in the lounge again.

"I could ask you the same question."

"Oh, so you mean saving you from falling is annoying you?"

"No."

"Then?"

"You've been annoying me ever since you came here."

"Oh, really? How?"

"Well, the first thing you did was to come here and ruin my hard-earned vacation."

"Well, I wouldn't have come if you hadn't accepted my bet."

Unable to find a suitable retort to that, May decided to ignore him and continued with her list.

"Then, there was that kiss—"

"Hey, I told you that if you just played along I wouldn't kiss you!"

"Yeah, right. Like I'm supposed to trust an egomaniac like you!!"

Drew was about to say that she could trust him because he would never lie to her, but then he realized by the look in May's eyes that he was giving his secret away. _No way am I gonna tell her I like her_, he thought.

May was feeling a teensy bit uneasy as she looked into his eyes to find, instead of an annoying smirk or something, something else that she hadn't seen before. But then all that faded from her mind as she saw the green-haired boy smirk and remark with an air of superiority,

"Guess you're right."

"_What?!_" May half-screamed in rage, clutching Drew's neck and preparing to strangle him. Just then, though, Mrs Ketchum's voice yelled from the kitchen that dinner was ready. Drew gave May a big grin as she sulked a little, letting go of his collar. "She won't be here all the time, jerk," May hissed, before wrapping him into a hug that surprised him for an instant before he realized that Ash and Misty were in the lounge too. Gently pulling away from her at Mrs Ketchum's second impatient call, he waltzed to the kitchen.

Ten minutes later everybody was silently eating at the table. Mrs Ketchum headed the table, with Ash and Misty on her right and left respectively. May was sitting on Misty's left, deliberately in front of Drew, so that she could pull faces at him whenever nobody else was looking. Max and Brock were sitting opposite each other, the former on May's left, and the latter on Drew's right. Everyone was minding their own business…well, almost everyone. Ash and Misty weren't even hungry. They kept pushing their food around their plate, both staring at each other, and still not realizing that the other was doing the same thing. Nobody else realized it, either, as Brock was absorbed in thoughts of Nurse Joy, whom he'd seen that day at the Pokemon Center; and Max and Professor Oak were, as usual, lost in thoughts of Pokemon, while Drew was trying not to laugh at May. The only person who did notice was Delia Ketchum, who smiled, decided not to interfere and concentrated on her own plate.

Misty gazed deeply at Ash, the email he'd sent her playing over and over in her mind. She couldn't help but notice how tall and muscular Ash had become over the years—a good few inches taller than her, in fact. His messy black hair crowded around his head, falling into his clear chocolate brown eyes. His dimples were still there, but instead of making him look childish like they used to, they made him look cute. Misty smiled to herself, shaking her head at the same time. _Look at him, all grown up and handsome as ever. And here I am, still the same old Misty. I guess Daisy was right when she said I needed a makeover. Why haven't I changed like everybody else?_

She was wrong, however, in thinking that she hadn't changed; and Ash would fully support that statement. While Misty was thinking this, he was thinking about her, and _noticing _her for the first time since she came that morning. She was still in the outfit she'd been in when she'd arrived, and perhaps, that was what was making her look so pretty, Ash mused; because he knew at least _he _had never thought of Misty Waterflower as beautiful…Heck, he'd hardly ever thought of her as a _girl_…

Without meaning to, he looked and looked again at her, until he became unable to take his eyes off of her. Her hair had grown into a prettier shade of red, and it was no longer wild like it used to be. Her skin was fair and delicate, and her cheeks always had a faint blush in them. Her eyes were the same deep blue-green, but they were larger, more intense, so that when she gazed into your eyes it was as though you could see something in them, that swished around like the sea. It reminded Ash of that Soul Dew he'd seen, when he'd gone to Alto Mare all those years ago with Brock and Misty and met Latios and Latias, and Bianca…_I wonder why I didn't feel sparks when Bianca kissed my cheek, like Brock said I would on my first kiss…_

Just then, he accidentally dropped his fork to the ground with a clang that was pretty loud in the silence. Blushing a little, he quickly dived down the table to retrieve it, and accidentally brushed his hand against Misty's leg. But he thought that it was his mom's leg, since he'd seen the same pair of flip-flops in her closet (they _were_ Delia's, but Misty had borrowed them). As he got up, he noticed that Misty was looking at him. He blushed and scratched his head, grinning sheepishly. She smiled sweetly at him, the blush in her own cheeks rising a little. Ash noticed that her eyelashes were longer and thicker than before, and her lips were…_SHINY? She's wearing lipgloss?! MISTY's wearing lipgloss?! I thought she hated makeup!! But I gotta admit, her lips look really nice…_

He was absorbed in thoughts of her when he realized that Misty was looking at him with her eyebrow slightly raised. Trying to concentrate on his food (which had surprisingly become really hard for him to do ever since he came to Pallet), he gave her another sheepish grin and stared into his plate as though, according to Misty, he was trying to break it using psychic powers. She smiled to herself and finally began eating as she saw that the others were already halfway through.

In the Kitchen, Around 10 pm

After dinner, Professor Oak and Max had gone immediately back to the laboratory. Brock, Drew and May were sitting in the lounge, watching American Idol (with Drew having his arm around May, and her continually pinching him whenever Brock was too absorbed in the program as a result). Delia Ketchum was outside in the garden, enjoying the quiet night while she chatted away on the phone with her friends. Ash and Misty were still in the kitchen. The gang had decided to take up the chore of clearing up after each meal as a token of appreciation to Ash's mom—and tonight was Ash's turn. Misty had offered to help, taking this as an opportunity to be alone with him, so that they could finally talk about the email Ash had sent without anyone hearing. She waited a little impatiently for Ash to bring up the topic, but she was unaware that Ash was feeling really awkward—as far as he remembered, there had never been a moment in their lives between the two when they hadn't been talking; but around ten minutes had passed, and yet neither of them had said a word. Ash waited for her to say something, and when she didn't, he deliberately dropped a glass in the sink, to evoke some infuriating comment from her, at least. But she only smiled a little and turned back to placing the leftovers in the fridge. Feeling really awkward now, he came to the conclusion that she obviously wanted him to start a conversation. He cleared his throat to prevent any squeaky voice from coming out, and broke the silence by saying a little awkwardly:

"Hey, Mist?"

"Yeah?"

"Um, thanks for helping me out right now."

"It's no problem."

Ash stared at the back of her head. _That's it? Isn't she going to say something, like 'you need help with that brain of yours' or whatever?_ He decided to have another try.

"So, uh, do you think Drew and May look nice together?" he asked, having no idea that she knew about Drew's little plan.

"Yes. I think they look really cute together," was Misty's response from the inside of the fridge, where her head was currently poking to make room for the leftover food. Ash couldn't see a sudden twinkle that emerged in her eyes as she thought he might be trying to say something about his and her getting together. The words of the email played over and over in her mind, and she waited for Ash to say what she wanted him to say. But instead, he went:

"What's up with you, Misty?"

"I'm perfectly fine, Ash." _Yeah, I'm perfectly fine. We're alone and I'm perfectly fine. You're not saying a word about us getting together, and I'm perfectly fine. You're not holding me or kissing me, and I'm perfectly fine. I love you, and you're acting like you don't. And even then, I'm just dandy, Ash. You idiot…are you embarrassed to talk about it?_

She was so lost in these thoughts that she didn't hear Ash when he shut the door of the dishwasher and started it, then turned to her and said, "You're _not _fine. You're acting like that time when I remembered to get you a birthday present two years back. And _don't _ask me whether I was the one who gave you that, because you _know _it was me, so don't annoy me by asking again."

_You're definitely embarrassed, I know. Ash, you're such a dork...Fine, if you want me to ask you right out, I'll do it…but don't ask me about it later…_Misty thought, a little irritated because she'd wanted a romantic moment in which Ash pulled her close and asked her to be his forever; while Ash experienced complete silence from her. Then, all of a sudden, Misty pulled her head out of the refrigerator and looked straight at him. "Did you send that?" she demanded.

Ash scowled at her. _She can be so annoying sometimes. But it's better than her keeping quiet, I guess. _A little frustrated, he walked straight up to her and put his hands on her waist and brought her face really close to hers, looking deep into her eyes; like he sometimes used to do when they'd get into an argument when they were traveling together. Both of them always fell calm when he pulled this tactic…and right now, Ash was pretty mad at her. But slowly, it started to fade away…

_He's…holding me…he's looking into my eyes…_Unconsciously, Misty put her arms around his neck.

Ash took a deep breath, not noticing. "Yes, Misty. I was the one who sent you that," he said slowly and softly. It always stopped both of them from getting into an argument when he talked quietly.

Misty felt something vibrating in the pit of stomach as his words fell on her ears. She stared into his eyes. He didn't seem like he was fooling around; in fact, she'd never seen him more serious before. She tried to look behind those chocolate brown eyes, those bottomless pits that she had been falling in for so many years. She had never been very good at seeing through people, and she couldn't see through Ash either, even though he was so easy to read. Just to make sure, she looked at him again.

"Really? You're not pulling my leg, are you?"

"No, Mist. You know I'd never do that, right?"

_He's not…kidding…he really loves me…Oh God…Hold on, why isn't he kissing me? Oh, great, now he wants me to do THAT as well?!...Fine then…I guess it's better than not getting a kiss at all…_

Ash kept on looking into Misty's eyes. He watched the stars that appeared in her eyes and grew, grew…It seemed as though it was daytime in her eyes. He smiled at her. She smiled back. He closed his eyes, thankful that he'd finally learned how to control his temper.

Just then, May walked into the kitchen, thankful to have gotten away from Drew with the excuse of going to check on Ash and Misty. As she saw them, wrapped so closely together and looking deeply into each other's eyes, she swiftly hid behind the door. _Looks like my plan's working...Oh God, I shouldn't be doing this. But this is so precious!!! Might as well hide and watch…I don't want to disturb them…_

Misty looked at Ash, tightening her hold on him without meaning to. She saw him shut his eyes…and prepared for something she had never thought she would ever get to experience in real life…She closed her eyes and slowly leaned in, like she thought Ash was doing as well…

He suddenly opened his eyes when he felt something warm and soft on his lips, that tasted like strawberries. He saw Misty, her eyes closed, her lashes caressing her pink cheeks, her lips fondling with his…"_She's…?"_

_-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------_

**A/N: Yeah, I got a feeling I'm gonna get a whoolle lotta flames on the whole MISTY/Drew part. But that's supposed to be a sort of build up for the plot, so don't yell at me!!! Besides, like I said, they're not gonna go out, ever, ever, ever!!! Over my dead body are they ever gonna be more than friends!! And anyways, I wanted to try something new. Smiles nervously Yeah, and this and the next chapter is maybe probably the only Misty/Drew you'll get from this story. **

**By the way, sorrryyyyy for taking so long!!!! There's a lot more to this chapter but that was making like, 30 pages???? So I HAD to cut it off from somewhere and turn it into a build-up chappie to prevent you guys from sleeping… XD**

**Aw, man!!! Gary can't come in till chapter 5!!!! Stupid my pen-getting-carried-away habits… X( X( X( X( X(**

**Again, thanks to prettygirl17, Haylie (SunKissed...love the pen name lolzz), beautifly-rulez12, mbm238, A Rose For Me-A Rose for You and Lilineko for reviewing. I love you guys!!!**

**Yeah, and for all the lazy people, here's the deal: Either you review OR I NEVER EVER EVER UPDATE IN A MILLION GAZILLION FRIKKIN YEARS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (And I'm serious!!!!!) **

**Ash: Yeah, have mercy on me!! I can't feel my lips anymore!!**

**Me ignoring Ash and Misty OH $&$#$#$&($#$#$&(&$#&(&$!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!**

**Misty: WHAT???**

**Me whacks head against wall I forgot to save the rest of the chapter!!!! Great, now I have to type it up again….. $&$&$$&(&…..**

**Misty: YOU IDIOT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! whacks head with mallet**

**Me: Iced Happy Bunny Boxers…snorts goofily and passes out**

**&(&$&(&()&&(&$&()&(()( What can I say? I'm devastated. (&$#&(&$#$&(&$#&&$#$&&&&$**


	4. Denial

**Author's Note: Well, I managed to find some parts of the chapter through a webpage version of the last chapter that I'd deleted, and thankfully, that was the only part where I'd used my head. As in, the rest of the chapter is written up inside my 'scribble-book', as I like to call it. Anyways, you better review, coz I still have to type up the entire story. AGAIN!!!! X( X( X( X( X( X( X( X( X( **

**Hey, Steph, I got your review, but I wasn't able to reply since it wasn't signed and you didn't leave any address. So…you said I need to work on some parts. Hmm, funny. I always got that same feeling when I was typing this up. But I never figured out WHAT part that was…so a little help here please??**

**Speaking of which, special thanks to all those who reviewed. Yeah, see? I got flamed for the Misty/Drew thing. But like I said before, it's necessary for the plot!! You better put up with it if you want some good CS in this story. Hint-hint. Lol.**

**Oh, and one more thing. I might take longer to update chapters now, since I'm going to California on a vacation on the 20****th**** or something. And I don't have my own personal computer there, and my four cousins and my brother are always bugging me to 'get off the friggin laptop'. Grrrr. Anyways, have a lil' mercy on me, okay???**

**Disclaimer: I own Pokemon. Of COURSE I own Pokemon!!!**

**Satoshi Tajiri: GHIJKLUKJHIGDEFIGHOJHIGTYEUIOALKJOPALMNBEVCADASEDIFUKRHIGADSASICVIHJKPOIJA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!**

**Me: What the hell was that??**

**Satoshi: Swearing in Japanese. --Smacks author across face--**

**Me: &&()&&…..**

**WARNING—THIS CHAPTER CONTAINS SWEARWORDS, SO DON'T SUE ME BECAUSE I ALREADY WARNED YOU!!!!!**

**--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**

**Chapter 4-Denial**

_Recap: He smiled at her. She smiled back. He closed his eyes, thankful that he'd finally learned how to control his temper. _

_Just then, May walked into the kitchen. As she saw them, wrapped so closely together, completely oblivious in their moment, she swiftly hid behind the door. Looks like my plan's working…_

_Misty looked at Ash, tightening her hold on him without meaning to. She saw him shut his eyes…and prepared for something she had never thought she would ever get to experience in real life…She closed her eyes and slowly leaned in…_

_He suddenly opened his eyes when he felt something warm and soft on his lips, which tasted like strawberries. He saw Misty, her eyes closed, her lashes caressing her pink cheeks, her lips fondling with his…"She's…?"_

Misty wished this moment would last forever. She couldn't help it. She'd wanted this for longer than she could remember. His lips on hers in a loving embrace, in a special moment that they shared together, alone…

She rained kiss upon kiss, finally letting out the passion she'd kept in for years in a worried rush…

Ash felt confused. There was something fluttering in his stomach. He didn't feel like leaving her. He didn't _want _to leave her. But his brain suddenly started talking.

_Are you nuts? You don't have a crush on her!! That's Misty Waterflower kissing you, for Pete's sake!! Let go!!_

_I don't want to…_

_WHAT?!_

_I'll hurt her feelings...I mean, she wants to do this…_

_You'll hurt her even more when she finds out you don't love her!!!!!  
I never said I don't love her!!_

_Well, DO you love her??_

_I…don't know…_

_Yeah, well, then let her go!! Why are you playing around with her emotions?_

_She was the one who started it!!_

_But you're not stopping her!!_

_You're not the boss of me!!_

_Look, Ash. It's better to tell her the truth now than to linger on and wait for her to find out herself!_

_What if I don't care?_

_You DO care. You don't want to make Misty upset. She's your best friend!!!_

_She could be more!!_

_She's ALSO your worst enemy. _

_Will you shut up and get out of my head??_

_No!! Not unless you pull away from her!_

_Get lost!!_

_DO IT!!!_

_GET THE FUCK OUT OF MY MIND!!!!!!! _**(AN: SOOOORRYYYY guys but this word was just fitting with the frustration…I try not to use swearwords…)**

_DO IT, THEN I'LL GO!!!!!!!!!_

_First you go!!_

_No, first you do it!!_

_NO!!_

_DO IT!!!_

_NO!! _

_DO IT!!!_

_NO!! _

_DO IT!!!_

_NO! _

_DO IT!!!_

_NO. _

_DO IT!!!_

_No. _

_DO IT!!!_

_No… _

_DO IT!!! _

_DO IT!!! _

_DO IT!!! _The voice grew stronger and stronger, as the other voice grew weaker…

Misty opened her eyes with a start as Ash suddenly pushed her away. "Shut up. SHUT UP!!!! I can't take this anymore!!!" She looked at him, confused and a little startled at his loud voice. He had his face all scrunched up and was holding it, feeling like his head would explode.

"What did I do?" Misty asked him softly.

He took a deep breath. _Oh, God. She really does love me…I don't love her…Guess that damned voice was right…_

He took a deep breath.

"Why did you just do that?"

"Do what?"

"You know…kiss me. Why'd you do that?"

Misty frowned. "Didn't you like it?" Then her expression changed to a sly one. "Or did you want to make the first move?" She moved closer again. Nervously, Ash backed up. "Look, Misty. I don't know how to say this, so I'm just gonna say it right out." He took a deep breath. Misty looked at him innocently. May stared at him in pure confusion. _What's he doing? He's supposed to make out with her, or something!!!_

H"Misty…I'm not in love with you."

She looked up at him with a confused expression, that was replaced almost instantly by a sly one. _I see where this is going, Ash._

"I'm not in love with you, either."

"Huh?"

"I'm not in _love _with you, silly…" she said teasingly, placing her hands on his chest, "I'm in _lust _with you."

Devoutly wishing that the floor would swallow him up out of his current situation, Ash backed away from her again, bumping into the counter.

"Misty, I'm serious!! I don't love you!!! I never, ever, ever in my life even thought of you as more than a friend!!!!" he said, almost pleadingly, saying the last words slowly for more emphasis.

_Lie, Ash, lie. You were thinking of her as a girlfriend only yesterday._

_You just shut the fuck up and let him do the right thing!!_** (SOORRYYY AGAIN!!!!!!!!!)**

May started instinctively biting her fingernails. _This…is NOT part of the plan. He's not going to do what I think he is, is he?_

Misty scowled at Ash and sat down at the table. "You are one weird person, Ash."

"_I'm _weird?!"

"Yeah. First you send me an email, saying you want to 'talk'," Misty put up her middle and index fingers, making inverted commas, "and that you have a crush on me, and now you're saying you don't. What kind of person are you?! All I did was go in for a kiss!"

"Well, I didn't—_email?_" Now even Ash was confused. "_What _email?!"

Misty rolled her eyes. "The email you sent me yesterday. Come on, Ash. Your memory isn't _that _bad."

Ash racked his brain hard for any time he'd gone online in the past two or three days. Then suddenly, it dawned upon him. He went over to Misty and sat on the floor on his knees in front of her, holding her by the shoulders.

"Misty," he said, as seriously and worriedly as he'd ever been, "the last message _I _sent you was the one in which I told you that we were having a vacation over at Pallet."

Misty's playfully angry expression changed to grave realization. "You mean you…didn't…"she stammered, embarrassment taking over her at the fact that she had accidentally let out her secret to the one person from whom she wished to keep that secret forever.

"No, Misty. I didn't send you that email. Someone must've hacked into my account and…" he drifted off, seeing her face as it gradually turned crimson.

"Oh…I'm…sorry, I didn't mean…" she whispered, her voice dripping with embarrassment like her face.

"It's okay…I know you didn't know…"

Misty fiddled with a loose thread on her shirt, still blushing. But then a thought came to her head.

"Well…I guess that's done for…but, Ash.." she whispered, staring at the floor.

"What?"

"Do you…know now?" she mumbled, the red returning to her face.

Ash knew. He knew very well. But he still shook his head.

Misty looked up at him, the sea of emotions in her eyes restless, swirling…

He didn't look her straight in the eye. He couldn't. He didn't dare. It was too hard.

"Ash…I love you…I…always have…ever since…I met you…" Misty whispered even more softly, blushing bright red and diverting her gaze to the floor.

Ash felt his eyes tingling as she spoke. He still stared at the floor. He had prided himself for the past few years that he'd finally matured, finally become a man…but right now, being a man was just about the only thing he couldn't do. Right now, he wanted to curl up in his mother's arms and cry and cry and cry, just like he used to when he got scared as a child. He dreaded the silence that had taken over the both of them, but even more, he dreaded the moment when Misty would break it.

Days, or months, maybe centuries later, she asked him that question. The much-dreaded question he'd been fearing all this time, ever since she had confessed to him…

"Ash…do you…love…me?" she whispered even more softly, shyly, mercilessly picking at the loose threads in her shirt.

Ash wanted to cry. He wanted to cry so badly. He couldn't bear to tell his best friend that he didn't love her. He couldn'tbreak her heart, he just _couldn't_…But he had to. Some things in life are very disagreeable, but one must do it for the sake of oneself, and others…

He took a deep breath. He tried to say something. He tried to reply. But nothing would come out, not even a squeak. He couldn't say anything. Death would be easier, so much easier...

Misty waited, and waited. Then, she gently lifted his face so that their eyes met. Ash closed his eyes, but he knew he had to open them sooner or later. Slowly, he opened his eyes, facing the truth, facing Misty. He took another deep breath, and looked deeply into her eyes. The sea was raging, swishing here and there, restless, hopeful…drowning him in it…

Misty gazed back at him, into his auburn eyes. She searched for a sign of approval, for happiness, for love, passion, _anything_…but all in vain. There was nothing, nothing in his eyes…nothing except sorrow and despair…

Frantic, searching, Misty held Ash by the shoulders. "Ash…answer me!"

Again, she searched in his eyes for a response, but all she could see was those bottomless chocolate-brown pits that she'd been falling in forever…only now they seemed cold, dreary…

Panicking in her heart, she shook Ash vigorously by the shoulders. "Ash, do you love me or not??" she demanded, a wave of emotion in her tone.

He wouldn't budge. He wouldn't say a word. He just shifted his gaze from hers.

Desperate, afraid, Misty shook him even harder.

"Ash, do you love me or not?!?!?! Tell me!!!" she cried. He still didn't say anything. She stood up, shaking a little, making him get up as well, by his shoulders.

"You don't love me, do you? You hate me!! You always hated me!! You never could love me!! Isn't that the truth?! You hate me!! You don't love me!! Don't you?!?! Say it!! Tell me the truth!! Come on!! You hate me, don't you?! JUST SAY IT!!!!"

"FINE!!! IF YOU WANT ME TO TELL YOU, I'LL SAY IT!! I DON'T LOVE YOU!!! I'M NOT EVEN SURE I LIKED YOU, EVER!!! HOW CAN YOU EXPECT ME TO LOVE YOU WHEN YOU'VE BEEN SO MEAN TO ME ALL THESE YEARS??? IN FACT, I'M PRETTY SURE I HATE YOU!!! YEAH!!! THAT'S RIGHT!!! I HATE YOU, MISTY WATERFLOWER!!!!!!!"

He stopped as he stared at her, realizing in horror what he had just said. He felt like someone had stabbed him in the chest. He hadn't meant to say all those things, and to say them so harshly…but his emotions made his tone colder than he meant it to be, his words slipping out of his mouth, out of control…

Misty dropped on her knees on the floor, unable to take in what Ash had just said. Shock took over her as all the moments they'd spent together flashed around Misty's eyes. The first time they'd met, their continuous bickering throughout their travel, the times they'd battled each other, the time when he'd touched her…Oh, how heavenly that was…the look in his eyes when they saw each other after a long time…Just that morning! And the kiss…just a few minutes ago!! It seemed…seemed like centuries….like it had happened in the life of quite another person. The world spun around Misty as thorns grew out of her heart, fending her off from the rest of the world…She had nothing, nothing in the world, no reason to live, but Ash…And now, she'd lost him as well.

Trying her best to remain calm and collected, she got up, only to fall in Ash's arms in her dizziness as a curious buzzing sound filled her ears. But she let go of him and staggered on, trying to see where she was going. Refusing the help of a sorry, confused Ash, she bumped into things again and again, trying to get away from him. Realizing it was useless, Ash stopped following her, and stared at her figure in utter remorse. _I'm sorry, Misty… _He tried to take his mind off of it by thinking of the good turn he'd done for her. But every time he thought about it, a sinking feeling crept into his heart. _I did the right thing…why does it feel so wrong??_

As she walked out the kitchen, trying to seem normal, a small hand grasped hers and pulled her to the side. As she looked to her right, Misty realized the hand belonged to May.

"Misty…I'm so sorry…" she whispered, her voice dripping with guilt and pity.

"Sorry…about what??" Misty asked her, still trying to maintain her composure. Unfortunately for her, she started feeling dizzy again and would have fallen if she didn't hold the wall in time.

"I was…the one who…sent you that…I…had no idea Ash…really didn't…have any feelings…for you…I…we—all thought…he did—he seemed…" May couldn't continue. A few of her sniffles turned into tears as she squeezed Misty's hand.

At first, the redhead was shocked. Why would one of her best friends do this to her?? But she slowly digested what May had said in her broken sentences. The brunette hadn't meant any harm. She was just trying to help.

Just then, May broke her train of thought. "I know you…hate me…I won't say anything," she mumbled softly. She turned around, but Misty turned her back and squeezed her hand tightly.

"It's not…your fault, May…you didn't mean…any harm," she whispered, trying to smile at her friend.

May stared at her through watery eyes. She was perfectly aware of how much Ash meant to Misty. He was all that was left of Misty's world, the light that showed her the way. May had Max, her parents, her Pokemon, her dream. Misty had nothing but Ash. May had played a huge role in taking Ash away from Misty. And here was Misty, consoling her when she needed comfort herself. Suddenly, the redhead pulled her into a quick hug and ran upstairs, holding the railing as she was still feeling dizzy. Staring after her in utter remorse, May leaned against the wall in despair. "It would've been so much easier to bear if you'd been harsh, or if you'd hit me, or anything," she whispered softly. "The way you forgave me…I feel like murdering myself…" As a few tears forced themselves out of their eyes, May slid down to the floor, bringing her knees up to her chin and hiding her face in them; proceeding to cry softly.

Upstairs, about 10:15 pm

Drew had left the lounge as soon as May had walked out, which had been about ten minutes ago; and at the moment was lying in his new bed, comfortably lost in a book he'd been reading lately. As he turned a leaf, though, he spotted a redheaded figure passing his open door. There was a certain air about her that made Drew feel like…she wasn't the same person anymore. The way she was walking, the way she was staring at the ground, even the way her braids were drooping off her head, seemed to suggest that something wasn't right. She passed quickly by, but one glance was enough for Drew to put his book somewhere where May couldn't find it and tear it up, and to follow Misty. But when he reached her room, he found that the door was locked. He tapped softly.

"Misty?"

There was a shuffling sound as she unlocked the door, recognizing Drew's voice. She didn't bother to open the door, though. Drew knocked again.

"Come in," a voice said softly.

As soon as she spoke, Drew realized the change in voice of the girl in the car to this girl. Feeling a little concerned, he pushed open the door.

"Misty, is something—"

He stopped as he stared at what he saw. There, on the bed, was Misty's suitcase, open and half-full. Misty herself had a pile of neatly folded clothes in her hands, and was apparently throwing them back inside. She stared at the floor, not daring to look into his deep green eyes as he turned to her indignantly.

"What the hell are you doing?" he asked her.

"Just putting my stuff back," she tried to answer casually. Unfortunately for her, a tiny but noticeable crack in her voice gave away her condition.

"_Why?!"_ he demanded.

"Just because," she attempted again. Another crack. Drew looked at her doubtfully.

"What happened?"

Misty forced a smile to her face, still not looking at him. She then proceeded to place the pile of clothes in her arms inside her bag.

"What makes you think…something's happened?" she asked him, trying to sound cheerful as she looked at the ceiling. She made it seem like she was just staring for fun, but in reality she was trying to stop her tears from falling. Drew walked over, pulling the pile of clothes back out, zipping up the bag and placing it firmly on the floor. He then turned to face Misty.

"Oh, well, let's see," he began in his well-known sarcastic tone. "You're not looking at me when you speak, you're walking in a weird manner, you keep staring at the ceiling, you sound sad, you're packing the first night you come here and in short, everything about you is wrong, all wrong."

Misty just shrugged. "It's all in your head, Drew. I'm…" she trailed off as Drew held her by the shoulders; the same way she'd held Ash only minutes ago. It made her shudder uncontrollably. Drew held her more tightly.

"Don't give me that crap that everything's fine, Misty," he said to her sternly. "I may not have known you for long, but I know you're not okay." His tone became softer as he lifted her chin so that she looked into his eyes.

"Look, Misty. You can tell me what happened. I won't tell anyone, and—I might be able to help you out." Misty gazed deep into his eyes. There was an honest concern and understanding flickering in them. That was when she realized—the burden was too much for her to bear alone. She couldn't do it. She _had _to tell someone. She couldn't tell May. She couldn't talk to Ash. She didn't think Brock would understand—he was too happy-go-lucky to realize her situation. The only person she _could _talk to…was Drew. Her newfound friend, who had more to him than she'd initially thought. She moved away from his grasp and sat down on the edge of the bed. Drew sat down beside her, holding her hand.

"…What?" he prompted her, softly.

"Ash…doesn't…he didn't…" Misty tried to begin, but suddenly had a strange feeling, as though someone were hollowing her out; that made her stop. Gently, Drew nudged her. "What?" he asked her again, squeezing her hand. Misty took a deep breath, preparing to let it all out.

"He doesn't…care for me…he didn't send me…that…" she said, so softly that Drew had difficulty in understanding, even though he was sitting next to her. As the words fell on his ears, though, he grew a little surprised—little as he knew about Ash and Misty's relationship; the way Ash would constantly rant and rave about her during their travel, and with how Misty liked Ash as well…he was expecting them to start going out, or something. This…was just out of the blue…

However, he used his head and decided not to let it show in front of the heartbroken redhead in front of him. He knew if he did, it would only worsen the situation. So, keeping his shock to himself, he let go of her hand and laughed heartily.

Misty stared at him, really hurt. She got up, tears welling up in her eyes, only to be pulled back by his hand.

"You're so upset over such a tiny thing?!" he asked her, as his laughter died away.

Misty looked at him indignantly. "This is NOT a tiny thing, Drew!!" she almost yelled. Drew raised an eyebrow as he looked at her.

"So he doesn't like you. Big deal. He's a bighead, Misty. Move on," he said, carelessly placing his hands on the back of his head. Misty looked at him, now really angry.

"I don't care if he's a bighead; he's MY bighead, Drew!! And I CAN'T move on!!" A telling tear dropped off the bridge of her nose. She turned away from him. "You don't understand, Drew. My life isn't as easy as I make it seem." She took a deep breath, preparing to tell Drew something even Ash didn't know much about.

"I'm--an orphan. Yeah, I am," she continued, seeing Drew's surprised expression. "My mom died when I was born. My dad died of lung cancer just a few days after that. My sisters are ashamed to call me one of their blood. They think I'm a scrawny little girl who can never do anything right. They only came back when I started running the gym at home successfully. They continuously tease me. They always avoid me whenever I go out. I have no family, Drew, no family except you guys. And Ash…is _more _than family," she finished, fairly crying by now.

Her words shocked Drew out of his skin, but brushing it aside, he sat on his knees on the floor before her. He took a tissue and gently wiped her eyes as he smiled at her. "Misty, you're crying?" he asked her in fake shock. "Well, I never thought I'd get to see this. Misty Waterflower, toughest girl in Kanto, tearing up?? Somebody get a camera!!" he joked, causing her to smile in spite of her tears. He gazed into her eyes. "You're not alone, Misty," he added softly. "I'm…an orphan too."

Misty stared at him. "Really?"

"Yeah. I've been through the same situation as you, only thankfully, I didn't have any elder siblings. But," he added softly, "I had to take care of my baby sister too."

Misty looked at him pitifully. Then, a small smile made its way to her face as she pulled him into a gentle hug. "Well, now you've got a big sister to take care of you," she said playfully, ruffling his hair. "Only she's gonna be a really nice big sister," she said sweetly. Drew grinned, hugging her back. "Hey, it took me ages to make that do!!" he squealed laughingly. Misty let go of him, still smiling softly. Drew looked at her. "You know what?? Right now, I'm gonna act like a good little brother and whack you on the head!" he said, tapping the top of Misty's head in a stern manner.

"What for??" Misty asked.

"For moping just because Ash said he doesn't love you."

The words stung Misty's heart deeply as she remembered again what Ash had done to her. His harsh words rang again and again like church bells in her head, and a fresh batch of tears proceeded to flow down her pale cheeks. Drew stopped them just in time by giving her another smart little tap on the head.

"See? Girls…_sickeningly _emotional," Drew said, sighing.

"What?!" Misty said crossly.

"Look, you're getting worked up all over nothing," Drew said, after another long sigh. Without giving Misty a chance to retort, he continued. "Don't give up hope. There's still chances that Ash likes you."

Misty sighed deeply. "Drew, he yelled in my face that he hated me. He doesn't even want to be my friend!!"

"And that's where you're wrong. He said that in frustration, to get you away from him. He thinks he doesn't like you, he thinks he can never like you…in that manner. And he got confused, and he accidentally said too much. But there's a ninety percent chance that he WILL regret what he just did and he'll realize that he loves you."

"Are you in your right mind? I just said he told me he hates me!!"

"_You're _the one not in your right mind, Misty!! Do you realize this is ASH KETCHUM we're talking about?!?! _I _think he's just confused."

"About what??"

"About his feelings for you. I mean, there's no denying that he DOES like you, Misty. We've all seen it. It's not possible that all of us are blind. I mean, me, May, Brock, Max, Professor Oak, Mrs Ketchum…everybody you guys have met till now…all of us. And to give you proof, he was gaping at you at the table today. I saw him, and there was pure love in his eyes."

Misty stared at Drew, a faint blush on her cheeks. "Really?" she asked shyly.

"Cross my heart," Drew said, holding both her hands in his.

Misty smiled. "But how can you be so sure??"

Drew sighed. "Look, Misty. Life is a strange thing. You can never know what's coming next, and the unexpected always happens. Just like right now," he said, as Misty nodded slowly, sadly. "Look at me. May claims she hates me, but I don't give up…and you don't see _me_ moping around all the time!"

"Yes I do. You're always moping. You're always smirking and being rude and—"

"Well, it's gotta have _some _effect on me, hasn't it?!" Drew said indignantly. "Anyways, like I said, I don't lose hope…because I have faith that May _will _start to like me. And that's what you gotta learn too."

Misty was nodding slowly in response, when suddenly, Ash softly entered the room.

He had been feeling awful lately, and had decided he had to go apologize to her. However, he hadn't been expecting what he saw when he entered—Misty, smiling, blushing slightly, as Drew knelt in front of her, holding both her hands in his, and looking deeply into her eyes. He glanced scrutinisingly at the green-haired boy, who quickly let go of Misty and got up. He had been meaning to go, but a secret tug at his sleeve detained him…he realized Misty needed his support to face Ash. He turned around to see her eyes already becoming a little watery. She glanced at him, and he looked back at her, as if to say, "Don't lose hope. Don't give up." Bracing herself, she ventured to gaze right into Ash's eyes.

"Ash, what do you want?" she asked him, taking care to keep her tone soft. She could see from his eager eyes that he would be shattered if she was mean to him.

"Misty…I didn't mean…all those things I said…" Ash mumbled softly. As he gazed into her deep eyes, overtaken with sudden emotion, he grasped her hand in his and looked pleadingly at her. "I don't know…what came over me…I really don't hate you. Really. You're the best friend I…_anybody_…could ever have. I don't feel for you the way you feel for me, Mist, but please don't leave my side…I need your friendship…I need your support…"

Misty shot a glance at Drew, who smirked softly to himself, slowly edging away from her and Ash. She looked at Ash and smiled weakly, warmly.

"Ash…even if you tried to kill me…I would never leave your side…" she said softly, pulling him closer by his hand. She softly flicked the tip of his nose with her index finger. "I won't leave until you get me a bike…" she whispered playfully. Ash stared at her, confused for a second. Then, he understood the joke and laughed softly along with her. Drew just watched, amused. _Love…is one troublesome thing..._

Ash just kept smiling for a few minutes, holding her hand, lost in his world. All of a sudden, though, he realized what he was doing. Blushing crimson, he let go of Misty's hand, smiled shyly at her and ran out the room. She just stared after him, smiling dreamily. How she longed to touch him, to kiss him, to have him all for her own…

She was awoken by a laughing Drew as he waved his hands in her face. "What?"

He laughed even harder. "Oh….man…" he panted between his laughs, "the look on his face….when he saw….you…me….hands…holding…oh, God….._priceless_….and you….gaping….he has _definitely_…got it bad…for you…but you guys are just too clueless!!!" he finished, holding his stomach, which was aching from laughing so hard. Misty narrowed her eyes at him playfully.

"You know," she said, "if you try laughing in front of May, I'm sure she'll fall for you."

"You think so??" Drew asked her eagerly, a blush arising in his cheeks. Misty laughed.

"_Priceless…"_ she gasped as Drew glared at her. Ignoring him, she picked up her suitcase and flung it back on the bed. Drew stared at her, aghast. _"Now _what?!?!"

Misty turned to face him. "Look, Drew. I just realized…I need some time alone…to think. Away from everybody."

Drew cocked his head to one side. "Why?"

"A lot has happened today…I need to think over it, so I can settle back down into my normal life. Besides, I don't think I have enough courage yet to face Ash alone…which I know I'll have to, a lot of times."  
"But why are you going back to Cerulean for that? Ferry tickets are very expensive, plus you can—" Drew began.

"You haven't heard me out, little bro. I said I was going. Who ever mentioned Cerulean??"

"Then where are you—"

"Professor Oak's mansion."

"But Max—"

"He's staying at the lab. I said mansion."

Drew thought over it a bit. Then he shrugged. "Fine, 'big sis'. If you want it that way." He smiled. _I never thought I'd actually have someone to look after me…_

Then, a couple of thoughts struck him.

"You're taller than me!!!"

Misty grinned victoriously. "Why d'ya think I'm bigger than you, even though we're both sixteen?"

"I thought that was because you're an Aquarian and I'm a Scorpio…and because you're some months older than me," Drew replied, grinning as well.

"Hey, Mist??"

"Yeah?"

"If Ash didn't send you that email, who did??"

"M—" Misty was about to say, when she stopped. She didn't want to be a storyteller and mess up her newfound little brother's relationship with May, even though the latter had done the same to her—but that was a pure accident. Drew looked at her questioningly.

"Maybe it was somebody else who hacked into Ash's account. You know a lot of people have Ash's email address…and even more people want the two of us to get together…" she trailed off. Drew shook his head. There was the little flicker of despair again. He reached out and pulled her into a tight hug. She rested her head on his right shoulder, facing left. They were both happy. They'd finally found someone who could understand them.

Just at that moment, May returned from the washroom, where she'd been washing her face. As she went to her room, engrossed in her thoughts, she passed the open door to Mrs Ketchum's room, and stared aghast as she saw Drew embrace Misty. _What…is going on?? She couldn't have…?_ May thought, as a startled expression suddenly appeared on her face. It wasn't because Drew was embracing MISTY, of all people…Well, that was startling in itself, but what really made her jump was a sudden twinge of rage that appeared in her heart out of nowhere. But it disappeared as soon as it had come, and she shrugged it off. After all, why should it bother _her _what Drew was doing? It was good for both him and Misty if they got together—Misty would get comfort, and Drew would lose the bet—_and _leave her alone. Yes, that would be great.

As she saw a sudden tear drop from Misty's eye, she felt a pang of guilt race through her. _I need to call…_she thought, picking up the cordless phone and going into the room that she and Drew were now sharing. She realized she'd had a really rough day, and she needed someone to vent her feelings about it. And she knew exactly who that someone was…

Fifteen minutes later

"Hey, Mist, I was—" Ash stopped as he saw the suitcase on her bed. "Where're you going?"

"To Professor Oak's house," was her short reply, as she threw her stuff inside. (Drew was in the restroom.)

"But…_why?_" Ash asked. He sounded as though he was going to stomp his foot like a child. Misty turned around.

"Ash, I need some time alone. I need to think…" she told him. "I'll be back soon, promise. Besides, I'm only down the road," she said sweetly.

"But…it's not the same as having you _here!"_

"Aw, come on Ash, don't be such a wet blanket," Misty said, giggling. As she walked out the room to get something, she placed a kiss on Ash's cheek. He stared at her, touching his cheek. She didn't look at him, and rushed outside, blushing furiously. So what if he didn't love her? She could find small vents no and then, like this…But she still devoutly wished that Ash would change his mind.

"Anything you say, Misty," Ash said to himself in a monotonic voice, as he smiled shyly to himself, walking out the room.

Inside the restroom, Drew rolled his eyes to himself. _Those two lovebirds…_

Half an hour later, around 10:45 pm

Drew had been helping Misty pack up, and now, he was really tired. All he wanted to do was go to sleep. He went to his room, only to find May sitting on her bed in the left corner of the room, chatting away on the cordless phone.

"I know!!! I couldn't believe it either…but I suppose it's good…I mean, after what I did, she deserves something, don't you think? No, I'm not!! Of course I did!! Okay, now you're just acting stupid. Yeah? What? SERIOUSLY?!?! No way!!"

Drew sighed and rolled his eyes. Girls. You just couldn't get 'em to shut up. He cleared his throat. May ignored him.

He sighed again. She was beginning to annoy him. He was really tired out, and he was aching for some sleep. Yawning heavily, he went to the bathroom and took a fifteen-minute hot bath to soothe his aching feet, which were really exhausted, what with his traveling, then with all the events that had taken place.

At 11:30 pm, when he finally stepped out (he'd taken longer so that May could finish her conversation) he saw that she was still talking away at the phone. She looked up as the pleasing smell of his bubble-bath wafted through her nose, but then returned to her conversation. Drew sighed again. He nudged May. She held up a two-finger sign. Drew rolled his eyes and stared at the clock.

Exactly two minutes later, he nudged her again. "May…" he said. This time she held up five fingers. Drew sulked, staring at the clock once more.

When he nudged her the next time, she put the phone on hold for a few seconds and glared at him. "Can't you see I'm talking?"

"Talk tomorrow. I need to sleep, and so do you," he shot back, really annoyed.

"Who's stopping ya from sleeping? Turn out the lights, I won't say anything."

"Fine. But talk softly." He got up, turned out the lights and got into his bed at the other end of the room. However, May continued to talk loudly, paying absolutely no heed to the fact that he was trying to sleep. Frustrated, he pulled his head up. _"May!!" _he hissed. She ignored him; or so it seemed—he couldn't see if she was putting up any fingers in the dark. But she continued to talk loudly. Really angry, Drew sat up in bed and yelled. _"MAY!!!"_

No response. Drew scowled. This was really getting on his nerves.

"_MAY, GET OFF THE STUPID PHONE AND GO TO BED!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" _he yelled.

Still no response.

_She wants to play it hard? Fine, then!!_ Drew was fuming. Really angry, he got up and went over to her bed. He snatched the phone from her and hung up. He went outside and placed it back in the hallway, then returning to their room, he locked the door and took the keys, hiding them underneath his bed so that she wouldn't be able to get the phone back. However, May didn't let him sleep. Furious, she turned on the lights and jumped on him as he cuddled up in his blanket.

"Who do you think you are, huh?! I was talking on the phone, and you just butt in out of nowhere and hang up?! I'll teach you to behave like that with me!!!" she yelled into his ear. Drew glared at her as he got her off of him and placed her next to him.

"Well, I told you to shut that fucking phone up five times!!" Drew yelled back at her, feeling the blood run into his cheeks. **(SORRY AGAINN!!!!!!!!!!)**

"SO?!?!?!"

Drew felt weird. Something about the angry, flushed May sitting in front of him and yelling, was arousing him…

"SO, you should be considerate about other people's needs too!!!" he said indignantly as he fiddled with his hands, trying to keep himself from touching her.

Unable to find a response to that, May just scrunched up her face and stuck her tongue out at him as long as it was possible, her eyes closed in a scowl.

All of a sudden, Drew lost control over himself. He leaned forward and his mouth closed over her tongue as he pushed her down to the bed, so that she was lying down with him on top of her. He stabbed hungrily at her lips, his hands on her cheeks. He was about to go further when a sudden half-frightened, half-angry sound from May brought him back to the real world. He could feel his cheeks turning hot all of a sudden as he got off of her and sat back up. She was blushing furiously as well, feeling a little scared. Fortunately for the both of them, they were already red from their fight, so their blushing didn't show.

For a while, none of them said a word. As May regained herself, though, she slapped Drew on the face, touching her lips in horror. _"DON'T EVER EVEN COME NEAR ME AGAIN, YOU PERVERTED FREAK!!!!!!!"_

Drew smirked as he leaned into her ear and whispered softly. "That's what you get for that kiss this morning," he told her in a husky voice.

Feeling a little scared, May just scowled at him and got off the bed to go to her own. But he grabbed her wrist and pulled her back, making her sit down on the edge of the bed. For once, she didn't say anything. She was feeling a little uncomfortable as she saw the look in his eyes. But all of a sudden, his look became softer.

"Don't be afraid, May. I'll never touch you…not until you want me to," he said softly, letting go of her wrist. May looked at him. His eyes were full of honesty. Her heart stopped beating, but somehow, she had known, even before he said so, even before she looked at him, that he would never stoop so low as to take a girl by force. He may be an arrogant, self-minded jerk, but he knew his limits. Besides, she thought, it _had _been her fault in the first place, even though she would never admit that, of course. Without another word, she got up and turned out the lights, getting into bed as she said 'goodnight'. Drew said 'goodnight' back, crawling into his quilt. May turned over on her right, facing the wall, while Drew turned over on his left, facing the adjacent wall. No one said anything for about ten minutes. But as soon as they were sure that the other was sleeping, each put a hand up to their lips and smiled secretly to themselves.

**A/N: So how was it?? **

**May: --whispers in author's ear—Nice.**

**Drew: --whispers in other ear—I love you!!**

**Me: No!! You're supposed to love May!!**

**May: EEwwww!! HIM?!?!**

**Drew: Gross!! I'm never going out with her!!!! –Winks at author—**

**Me: Whatever. Ash, do the R&R and then—Ash? ASH?!?! HELLOO!!!**

**Ash; Huh? What?? –Feels cheek and smiles goofily—**

**Drew: --slaps Ash—Snap out of it, man!!**

**Ash: Uh huh. –Feels cheek again and smiles—**

**Me: Arrrggg!!! Misty, you do the R&R, Ash is—Oh, God. Where's Misty now?!?!**

**May: She's outside, talking to someone.**

**Me: Well, who the hell is she talking to?!?! She's supposed to be—Looks out the window—OH MY GAWD!!!!!!! IT'S…IT'S…–Jumps and laughs freakishly—**

**May: What's she doing?**

**Drew: Probably one of her native dances. –Smirks--**

**May: --Laughs—Anyway, everybody, please read and review!! Drew, try to get her straight.**

**Drew: Sure thing. Come on, LIF, I think you forgot your medicine again…**

**END**


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